--WORKSHEET-- Student Worksheet: Plot! Analyze! and Draw your Conclusions! --WORKSHEET--

Name:_________________________

Date:___________________________

Student Worksheet: Plot! Analyze! and Draw your Conclusions!

INSTRUCTIONS
If you do NOT have access to a spreadsheet program such as Microsoft Excel or ClarisWorks, you can use the table and graphs below to record, graph, and analyze the "Checked Final Data." You will need this information when you and your class are preparing to the final report.

Select 10 schools to graph
Select at least 10 schools from the Final Checked Data and record them in the following table. You should select schools from both the Northern and Southern hemispheres as well as schools closet to the equator.

	School	Location	Latitude	Daylight (minutes)	Temperature (°C)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

Plot the Data: Make two (2) graphs using the data from the schools you selected above.
1. Plot Daylight vs. Latitude
  The first graph that you should make will help you determine how proximity to the equator (latitude) affects the average minutes of sunlight per day. Your x-axis coordinate will be the latitude and the y-axis coordinate will be the average number of minutes of sunlight.

Daylight vs. Latitude

Plot Temperature vs. Latitude
The second graph that you should make will help you determine how proximity to the equator (latitude) affects average daily temperature. Your x-axis coordinate will be the latitude and the y-axis coordinate will be the average daily temperature (°C).

Temperature vs. Latitude
Don't forget to convert your temperature to degrees Celsius

Analyze the Data: Draw a "line of best fit" or "trend line" through the data in each of the 2 graphs above. Do not "connect the dots" but, rather draw a straight line which represents the trend in the data. Roughly half of the data points should be above the line and half below it.

If many of the data points lie on or close to the line of best fit, you can rest assured that there's a good strong relationship between the two variables. In other words, if the line of best fit accurately represents the trend in data, then there is probably a strong correlation between the two variables. If the data is scattered and it is difficult to draw a line of best fit or the data doesn't appear to lie on or near the line of best fit, then there probably is no correlation between the two variables you have graphed.
Draw your Conclusions: Based on your graphs and analysis, figure out if there is any relationship between:
1. Is there a relationship between Daylight (average minutes of sunlight) and Latitude? Why do you think so?
2. Is there a relationship between Temperature and Latitude? Why do you think so?