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New
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Year 11
Higher

Constructing box plots

I can construct a box plot.

icon-background-square
New
New
Year 11
Higher

Constructing box plots

I can construct a box plot.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. A box plot requires 5 pieces of information
  2. These are lowest value, lower quartile, median, upper quartile and highest value
  3. Outliers should be included in the range for now
  4. At A level, there are suggested ways to identify outliers and indicate these

Keywords

  • Box plot - A box plot is a diagram that clearly shows the minimum and maximum value of a data set along with the three quartiles.

Common misconception

Forgetting to order the list of data before finding the 5 key pieces of information.

Ask some pupils to stand at the front of the classroom. Find the person in the middle, and pose the question "is they the median sized person?" Repeat with quartiles. This should highlight the importance of putting the numbers in order first.


To help you plan your year 11 maths lesson on: Constructing box plots, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Collect data from the class and draw a box plot for the data. You could collect data on the number of times they can flip a coin or roll a dice in a given number of seconds. Alternatively, show a picture that requires an estimation e.g. the height of a building, then collect this estimation data.
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Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
Match each term to the correct $$Q$$.
Correct Answer:Lower quartile,$$Q_1$$
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$$Q_1$$

Correct Answer:Median,$$Q_2$$
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$$Q_2$$

Correct Answer:Upper quartile,$$Q_3$$
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$$Q_3$$

Q2.
Use this graph to estimate the median.
An image in a quiz
10
15
Correct answer: 30
36
38
Q3.
Use this graph to estimate the lower quartile.
An image in a quiz
5
7.5
Correct answer: 18
21
24
Q4.
Use this graph to estimate the upper quartile.
An image in a quiz
15
30
31
Correct answer: 36
42
Q5.
60% of people score or less.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: 13
Q6.
Any pupil scoring over 16 marks gets a certificate. How many certificates are given out?
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: 4

6 Questions

Q1.
Match the letters to the correct term.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer:A,Lowest value
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Lowest value

Correct Answer:B,Lower quartile
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Lower quartile

Correct Answer:C,Median
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Median

Correct Answer:D,Upper quartile
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Upper quartile

Correct Answer:E,Highest value
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Highest value

Q2.
What is the median height?
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: 125 cm, 125cm, 125
Q3.
What is the upper quartile height?
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: 131 cm, 131
Q4.
What is the lower quartile of this set of data? 17, 13, 19, 21, 13, 14
Correct Answer: 13
Q5.
Below is a box plot for this set of data: 17, 13, 19, 21, 13, 14. What is the value of point E on the box plot?
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: 21
Q6.
Below is a box plot for this set of data: 17, 13, 19, 21, 13, 14. What is the value of point C on the box plot?
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: 15.5