Calculating the mean REVISION

This short revision lesson (@10-15 minutes) reminds students of the method involved in calculating the mean. The lesson has been primarily designed for use with those students taking the AQA Combined Science FT in the lead up to mock and GCSE examinations, but is also suitable for students taking the HT, or separate science. It also reminds them about the existence of systematic and random errors, and how to deal with a random error to reduce the impact on the mean.

The lesson begins by challenging the students to recognise descriptions of median, mode and mean. A question concerning the calculation of the mean is normally found across the 6 papers of combined science, so a strong understanding of this method is a good opportunity for students to pick up marks (and helps with maths exams too). An exam-style question is modelled on the slide and then the students will answer 2 understanding checks. All answers are embedded into the PowerPoint to allow students to assess their understanding and progress. A quick quiz is then used to reveal the word “error” and students are reminded that errors can be systematic or random. Again, an example is modelled to show students that the random error should be identified and then discarded and not included in the mean calculation.

Other short revision lessons on science topics including relative formula mass, percentage by mass in compounds, mitosis vs meiosis and half-life graphs are uploaded.