Elkins School District
Alternate Method of Instruction (AMI) AMI Day #_2 _ School Name
Elkins Middle School
Teacher Name
Kurt Zen-Ruffinen
Subject / Course Name
6th Grade Science
Assignment Description
ONLINE: Google Classroom “Mathematics and Science” and summary
PAPER HARD-COPY: “Mathematics and Science” and Summary
Contact Information
PHONE/TEXT: EMAIL ADDRESS
[email protected] OTHER:
Assignments will be graded and entered into the gradebook according to the teacher’s grading system. Attendance will be recorded based upon completion of the assignment.
Mathematics and Science Guide for Reading ■ What math skills do scientists use in collecting data and making measurements? ■ What math skills help scientists analyze their data? Mathematics is essential for asking and answering questions about the natural world. An estimate is an approximation of a number based on reasonable assumptions. Scientists must sometimes rely on estimates when they cannot obtain exact numbers. Accuracy refers to how close a measurement is to the true or accepted value. Precision refers to how close a group of measurements are to each other. Both accuracy and precision are important when you make measurements. Scientists use the term significant figures to refer to the digits in a measurement. The significant figures in a measurement include all of the digits that have been measured exactly, plus one digit whose value has been estimated. When you add or subtract measurements, the answer can have only as many figures after the decimal point as the measurement with the fewest figures after the decimal. When multiplying or dividing, the answer can have only the same number of significant figures as the measurement with the fewest significant figures. Percent error calculations are used to determine how accurate, or close to the true value, an experimental value really is. To calculate percent error, use the following formula: Percent error = experimental value - true value / true value X 100% A low percent error means that the result you obtained was very accurate. A high percent error means that your result was not very accurate. There are several ways to calculate an “average.” They include the mean, median, and mode. The mean, or numerical average, is calculated by adding up all the numbers and then dividing by the total number of items on the list. To calculate the mean, use the following formula: Mean = Sum of the numbers / The total number of numbers The median is the middle number in a set of data. To find the median,place all the numbers in order from smallest to largest. The median is the middle entry in the list. If a list has an even number of entries, add the two middle numbers together and divide by two. The mode is the number that appears most often in a list of numbers.
Mathematics and Science 1. When do scientists have to rely on estimates? ________________________________________________________________________ 2. Why are both accuracy and precision important in making a measurement? ________________________________________________________________________ 3. What do the significant figures in a measurement include? ________________________________________________________________________ 4. What is percent error calculation used to determine? ________________________________________________________________________ 5. What are three ways to calculate average? ________________________________________________________________________ Match each term with its definition by writing the letter of the correct definition on the line beside the term in the left column. ____ 6. estimate
a. how close a group of measurements are to each other
____ 7. accuracy
b. the number that appears most often in a list of numbers
____ 8. precision
c. the digits in a measurement that have been measured exactly, plus one whose value has been estimated
____ 9. significant figures
d. the numerical average
____ 10. percent error
e. how close a measurement is to the true or accepted value
____ 11. mean
f. an approximation of a number based on reasonable assumptions
____ 12. median
g. a calculation used to determine how accurate an experimental value really is
____ 13. mode
h. the middle number in a set of data