PROBABILITY
Turner, Emily Joplin Elementary School
1-312-962-4625
Objectives
The student will:
1) Understand the concept of probability and the basic probability formula.
2) Will be able to predict the possible outcomes of an event.
Materials
Six golf balls: Paper plates
3 yellow Plastic lids
2 white Paper fasteners
1 orange Colored marker
Recommended Strategies
Review the definition of probability. Use golf balls to demonstrate the basic
probability formula, which is, the probability of an event is the fraction of the
total number of outcomes that cause that event to occur. For example, if there are 3
yellow golf balls, 2 white, and 1 orange, what is the total possible outcome or set
of choices that can be selected? (6) What is the probability of selecting a yellow
ball? (3/6) A white ball? (2/6) An orange one? (1/6)
The number wheel, which is made by using a paper plate, a piece of plastic for the
pointer, and a paper fastener, can be used to demonstrate the probability of a
particular outcome after a number of trials. It can also be used to show the
probability ratio, the number of outcomes, the ratio of outcomes to trials, and the
percent of outcomes to trials for each number on the wheel.
To further enhance the learning of the above objectives, the student can complete an
experiment at home which involves tossing a coin fifty times. The same information
that was found using the number wheel can be found in the coin experiment.
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