Teaching Tips Explore techniques for teaching mathematics like questioning techniques, cooperative learning, classroom climate, inclusion, and more. There are lots of places to find real data, ways to use real data, and reasons to use real data. Outside of school a lot of people use mathematics as a tool to describe relationships and patterns in data. The following are a few tips to may help you and your students start to get your fingers dirty using real data. Ask questions to create a need for data.
Most people look at real data because they want to answer a question.
Current events and local news can be great sources for questions that need data. Collect data close to home. Seek out other sources of data. There is always quite a bit of data in the newspapers or news magazines. An almanac can be a great source and the Web offers access to a wide range of data.