Interpreting and Presenting ResultsActivities & Teaching Strategies
Active learning works for interpreting and presenting results because students need to move from abstract data to concrete visuals and explanations. When they build graphs and posters with their hands, they connect numbers to real-world meaning, which deepens understanding beyond worksheets or lectures.
Learning Objectives
- 1Construct a bar chart or pictogram to represent data collected during a scientific investigation.
- 2Analyze collected data to identify patterns and trends relevant to the original scientific question.
- 3Explain how graphical representations of data help answer a scientific question, using precise scientific language.
- 4Evaluate the effectiveness of a chosen graph in communicating investigation findings.
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Small Groups: Shadow Length Bar Charts
Groups collect shadow length data from a light investigation, tally results in a table, then draw a labelled bar chart on poster paper. They add a title and discuss patterns before presenting to the class. Extend by comparing to predictions.
Prepare & details
Explain how a graph can tell a story about our data.
Facilitation Tip: During the Shadow Length Bar Charts activity, circulate with a checklist of labels, scales, and units to prompt students who skip details.
Setup: Tables or desks arranged as exhibit stations around room
Materials: Exhibit planning template, Art supplies for artifact creation, Label/placard cards, Visitor feedback form
Pairs: Pictogram Plant Stories
Pairs use plant growth data to create a pictogram with symbols representing measurements. They write two sentences explaining the 'story' of the data and how it answers the question. Pairs swap with another to interpret and give feedback.
Prepare & details
Construct a simple bar chart or pictogram to represent data.
Facilitation Tip: For Pictogram Plant Stories, model how to turn raw data into a short narrative before pairs create their own.
Setup: Tables or desks arranged as exhibit stations around room
Materials: Exhibit planning template, Art supplies for artifact creation, Label/placard cards, Visitor feedback form
Whole Class: Results Carousel
Display group graphs around the room; students rotate in pairs to read, note patterns, and record one question per poster. Regroup to answer peer questions using scientific language. Conclude with class vote on clearest presentation.
Prepare & details
Analyze how our results help us answer our original question.
Facilitation Tip: During the Results Carousel, assign specific questions for students to answer about each graph to guide focused discussion.
Setup: Tables or desks arranged as exhibit stations around room
Materials: Exhibit planning template, Art supplies for artifact creation, Label/placard cards, Visitor feedback form
Individual: My Findings Poster
Each student selects personal data, draws a labelled graph or diagram, and writes an explanation linking to the investigation question. Share in a 'science fair' walk where peers ask clarifying questions.
Prepare & details
Explain how a graph can tell a story about our data.
Facilitation Tip: For My Findings Poster, provide a sentence frame to scaffold explanations linking evidence to the question.
Setup: Tables or desks arranged as exhibit stations around room
Materials: Exhibit planning template, Art supplies for artifact creation, Label/placard cards, Visitor feedback form
Teaching This Topic
Teachers should model the thinking process aloud when constructing graphs, showing how to decide on scales and labels. Avoid rushing to the final product; instead, use think-alouds to reveal common pitfalls like mismatched axes or missing titles. Research suggests that guided peer review, where students check each other’s work against clear criteria, improves accuracy and confidence in presenting data.
What to Expect
By the end of this hub, students will confidently organise data into tables and transform it into labelled drawings, bar charts, or pictograms. They will explain patterns using scientific language and discuss how their findings answer the original question, including any surprises.
These activities are a starting point. A full mission is the experience.
- Complete facilitation script with teacher dialogue
- Printable student materials, ready for class
- Differentiation strategies for every learner
Watch Out for These Misconceptions
Common MisconceptionDuring the Shadow Length Bar Charts activity, students often omit axes labels, making graphs hard to read.
What to Teach Instead
Provide a shared checklist with each group and ask them to label axes, add a title, and include units before they start plotting data. Have pairs exchange graphs to check for missing details before finalising their work.
Common MisconceptionDuring the Pictogram Plant Stories activity, children expect data to match predictions exactly and ignore anomalies.
What to Teach Instead
Use the activity’s discussion time to highlight real anomalies in the data. Ask students to describe what they see and explain possible reasons, normalising unexpected results as part of scientific investigation.
Common MisconceptionDuring the My Findings Poster activity, students list data without explaining what it means.
What to Teach Instead
Model how to use linking words like 'shows that' or 'because' to connect data to explanations. Provide sentence starters on the poster template, such as 'The pattern I see is...' to guide their writing.
Assessment Ideas
After the Shadow Length Bar Charts activity, give students a blank template and a small data set. Ask them to create a simple bar chart and write one sentence interpreting the results to reveal their understanding of scales and labels.
During the Results Carousel activity, observe students as they move between graphs. Ask targeted questions like 'What does this bar represent?' or 'Why did you choose this scale?' to assess their ability to interpret data.
After the Pictogram Plant Stories activity, present a completed pictogram to the class. Ask: 'What story does this graph tell about our investigation?' 'How does it help us answer our question?' 'What could we change next time to test this again?'
Extensions & Scaffolding
- Challenge: Ask students to design a new investigation based on unexpected results from their graphs.
- Scaffolding: Provide partially completed graphs or templates with pre-labeled axes for students who struggle with organisation.
- Deeper exploration: Introduce a third variable to compare, such as adding another light source or plant type to extend the data set.
Key Vocabulary
| Data | Information collected during an investigation, often in the form of observations or measurements. |
| Bar Chart | A graph that uses rectangular bars of varying heights or lengths to represent and compare data. |
| Pictogram | A graph that uses simple pictures or symbols to represent data, with each symbol standing for a specific number of items. |
| Pattern | A noticeable regularity or trend in the data that helps to understand the results. |
Suggested Methodologies
Planning templates for Science
5E Model
The 5E Model structures lessons through five phases (Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate), guiding students from curiosity to deep understanding through inquiry-based learning.
Unit PlannerThematic Unit
Organize a multi-week unit around a central theme or essential question that cuts across topics, texts, and disciplines, helping students see connections and build deeper understanding.
RubricSingle-Point Rubric
Build a single-point rubric that defines only the "meets standard" level, leaving space for teachers to document what exceeded and what fell short. Simple to create, easy for students to understand.
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