Kentucky Academy of Technology Education

Mathematics: Displaying Data with Graphs and Charts

Core Connections

Teaching and learning mathematics data in the classroom can be greatly enhanced with the use of graphs and charts. Students can take common mathematical problems and display their results and information in an innovative and engaging manner with the use of these tools. The use of graphs and charts not only displays data but allows students a visual means of analyzing the data they have collected.

Tinkerplots are another way of analyzing data. They are an inquiry-based software construction set of graph pieces. Students can order, stack and separate icons to eventually build their own plots for analyzing data. Teachers who are striving to teach students data analysis in accordance with the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics' Curriculum Standards are finding TinkerPlots to be very helpful. More information can be found at

Mexican-American Art, Music and Culture

Core Connections

Mexican-Americans are the fastest growing population in America. To better understand this diverse group of people we must delve into their life, art, music and culture. Through effective education students can gain a better understanding of this growing population.

Integrating Mexican-American history and culture into the social studies classroom is a worthy and important goal for all schools. Effective integration requires that teachers have accurate materials that represent the diversity of the Mexican-American experience and the broad range of contributions made by Mexican-Americans.

If the goals of developing cultural pride, self-esteem, and respect for diversity are to be fully achieved, the total school environment--inside and outside the classroom--must respect diversity and display an appreciation of Mexican-American students and their heritage. (Escamilla, Kathy 1992)