Mathematics · Year 2

Active learning ideas

Asking Questions and Collecting Data

This topic is your pupils' first step into the world of statistics, turning them into data detectives in their own classroom. They will learn the power of asking good questions to find out interesting things about their friends.

• National Curriculum Attainment Targets
• National Curriculum for England: Year 2 - Statistics

• 15–30 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 3 activities

Activity 01

• Four Corners
• 15 min · Whole Class

Human Sorting Circles

Using large hoops or chalk circles in the hall or playground, call out a category such as 'wearing trainers' or 'has a sibling'. Pupils then have to sort themselves into the correct group, discussing their reasoning.

Explain why it is important to ask a clear question before collecting data.

Facilitation Tip

Start with simple binary categories before introducing sorting with three or more options, such as favourite season.

What to look for

Observe pupils as they work in pairs to create a question and a tally chart. Note whether their question is clear and if they are recording the tallies correctly using the 'gate' for the fifth mark.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Social Awareness

Activity 02

• Four Corners
• 30 min · Small Groups

Classroom Census

In small groups, pupils devise a simple question to ask their classmates, for example, 'How do you travel to school?'. They then move around the room, collecting answers and recording them using a tally chart.

Compare the different ways we can sort our classmates, for example by eye colour or favourite fruit.

Facilitation Tip

Provide a pre-made template for the tally chart to help pupils structure their data collection.

What to look for

Provide pupils with a completed tally chart or simple pictogram and ask them to answer 2-3 simple questions about it, such as 'Which category was the most popular?' or 'How many people chose cats?'.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Social Awareness

Activity 03

• Four Corners
• 25 min · Pairs

Favourite Fruit Pictogram

As a class, conduct a survey on favourite fruits. Pupils then work individually or in pairs to create a simple pictogram to represent the data, where one drawing of a fruit represents one vote.

Identify a question you could ask your class and explain how you would collect the answers.

Facilitation Tip

Remind pupils that all pictograms need a clear title and labels for the categories.

What to look for

Pupils use a simple traffic light system or smiley faces to indicate their confidence against 'I can...' statements, such as 'I can ask a clear question' and 'I can use a tally chart'.

• Understand
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Self-Awareness
• Social Awareness

A few notes on teaching this unit

Start by modelling the entire process with a fun, whole-class question, like 'What is the best superpower?'. Emphasise how to refine a vague question into a clear one with specific choices. Use physical sorting activities to make the idea of 'categories' concrete before moving to paper-based recording. Provide structured templates for tally charts at first to build confidence.

By the end of this topic, pupils will be able to create a simple question, survey their classmates, and neatly record their findings in a tally chart. They will understand that data helps us answer questions.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• Any question is a good question for a survey.

  A good question for collecting data is clear and usually has a limited number of possible answers. 'What is your favourite pet?' is a better question than 'What do you like?' because it is specific and the answers can be easily categorised.

• Tally marks are just random lines to keep count.

  Tally marks are a special system for counting. We draw four vertical lines, and the fifth line is drawn diagonally across the group. This 'gate' makes it much easier and quicker to count the totals in groups of five.

• You can only sort a group of objects in one way.

  Most objects have many different features, or attributes. This means we can sort the same collection of items in lots of different ways, for example, sorting the same pupils by their hair colour, their shoe size, or the month they were born in.

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Methods used in this brief

• Four Corners