Maths
Birds at our bird feeder: collect and graph data
Count a fictional week’s bird tallies, turn the frequencies into a bar chart and use the chart to answer seven questions. Two pupil pages move from the supplied feeder data to planning a school survey. The separate companion gives frequencies, bar heights, answers and the marking allocation.
Turn these bird tallies into a bar chart. The counts are made-up examples for practice.
Read the complete materialRead the material
Count a fictional week’s bird tallies, turn the frequencies into a bar chart and use the chart to answer seven questions. Two pupil pages move from the supplied feeder data to planning a school survey. The separate companion gives frequencies, bar heights, answers and the marking allocation.
Pupil worksheet. Use the preview for diagrams and layout.
Page 1
NAME CLASS DATE LEARNING GOAL Record data in a tally chart and show it in a bar chart. SUCCESS CRITERIA I can count tally marks in fives. I can draw bars using a scale. I can label my chart. 6 marks We watched our feeder for 10 minutes each morning, Monday to Friday. Count each tally in fives. Write the frequency (how many). = 5 BIRD TALLY FREQUENCY House sparrow 22 EXAMPLE Blue tit Starling BIRD TALLY FREQUENCY Blackbird Robin Magpie Grand total: add all six frequencies These tallies are made up. On page 2 you plan a survey of the birds that visit your school. 6 marks MATHS AGES 8 TO 11 STATISTICS Birds at our bird feeder N 1 Count the tallies birds 2 Draw the bar chart TITLE Draw each bar up to its frequency with a ruler. 1 square = 2 birds, so 7 birds is 3½ squares. 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 House sparrow Blue tit Starling Blackbird Robin Magpie Kind of bird Number of birds 1 square = 2 birds Pupil activity | Page 1 of 2
Page 2
10 marks GO FURTHER If 1 square = 1 bird, how many squares tall is the house sparrow bar? Would it fit on the grid? Squares Fits? Survey the birds that visit your school. Watch quietly from a distance. BIRD TALLY FREQUENCY Total MATHS AGES 8 TO 11 READ AND PLAN Read the chart, then plan your own survey 3 Read your chart Q1 Use page 1. Which bird came most? BIRD How many? birds Q2 Which bird came least? BIRD How many? birds Q3 How many more house sparrows than blackbirds? Answer birds Q4 How many birds came in the whole week? Answer birds Q5 Which two kinds of bird add up to exactly 30? AND Q6 The robin bar is half as tall as which bar? BIRD Why could the numbers change next week? Give two reasons. Think: weather, food, time of day, a cat nearby. Q7 2 marks 4 Plan your own survey MY QUESTION e.g. Which bird comes most? WHERE I WILL WATCH WHEN, AND FOR HOW LONG MY PREDICTION Pupil activity | Page 2 of 2
Page 1
Teacher companion Birds at our bird feeder: collect and graph data Tallies and bar chart House sparrow 22; blue tit 16; starling 14; blackbird 10; robin 7; magpie 4. Total 73. At 2 birds per square, bar heights are 11, 8, 7, 5, 3.5 and 2 squares. Seven answers and extension Q1 house sparrow, 22. Q2 magpie, 4. Q3 12 more. Q4 73. Q5 blue tit and starling (16 + 14 = 30). Q6 starling (14 is twice 7). Q7 accept two plausible changes such as food, weather, observation time or disturbance; these are hypotheses, not measured causes. Extension: 22 squares; it does not fit this grid of 12 vertical squares. Mark allocation Tally section: 6 marks, one for each correct frequency, including checking the example. Bars: 6 marks, one correct height per category using the stated scale. Questions: Q1/Q2 2 each (bird and count); Q3-Q6 1 each; Q7 2, one per plausible reason. Total 22 marks. Survey planning is unmarked; confirm safe location and agreed observation method. Sequence This edition has two pupil pages and this separate key. Teacher companion | Page 1 of 1
A teaching sequence
Pupils should convert all six tallies to frequencies, draw bars at two birds per square and answer comparison questions using the chart. They should also specify where, when and for how long a proposed survey would run.
Turn these bird tallies into a bar chart. The counts are made-up examples for practice.
Read the complete materialCount and check
Convert the six tallies into frequencies. Count complete groups of five first, then check the partly filled group.
How did you check the partly filled tally group?
Draw to scale
Label the axes and draw the bars using two birds per square. Show how an odd frequency fits between gridlines.
7 birds ÷ 2 birds per square = 3½ squares
Seven robins need a bar three and a half squares high.
Read the evidence
Answer the seven chart questions using the bars and labels. Keep possible reasons for a different week separate from what these invented counts show.
Which labelled bar supports your comparison?
Plan a fair survey
State the question, place, time, duration and prediction. Agree a safe observation place and a consistent method before collecting real data.
Could someone repeat the survey from your question, place and timing?
Before you teach
Look for the thinking behind an answer, choose the support your class needs and leave room for an independent response.
What to look for
Look for frequencies of 22, 16, 14, 10, 7 and 4, totalling 73. The robin bar should be 3.5 squares high. If a pupil draws seven squares, ask how many birds one square represents and have them rebuild that bar. For Q7, accept plausible hypotheses rather than claims of measured causes.
Give a little support
Use tally groups and a ruler to connect counting with bar height. Mark a half-square on the grid before drawing the robin bar, and offer a small table linking frequency to squares. Ask pupils to explain one conversion aloud before completing the remaining categories.
Take the idea further
Investigate the printed one-bird-per-square challenge: a house-sparrow bar needs 22 squares and will not fit the 12-square grid. Propose a scale that would fit the same data, then explain what stays constant when the bar heights and axis labels change.
Things to keep in mind
The sample tally data are invented. Possible reasons for later changes are hypotheses, not measured causes.
Keep the idea. Make it yours.
Bring your topic, learning goal and class context to PLAI™, then review what you create.
Ideas to try with your class
Sample teaching perspectives on what to try, what to adapt and what to watch for.
Meet The Creators
Meet a creator whose teaching interests connect with this template.
Notes Between Bells
The worked house-sparrow count of 22 anchors page 1, then the 2-birds-per-square scale makes the robin’s seven a deliberate half-square check. Page 2 shifts from the fictional feeder tallies to planning a school survey.
Gentle Reminder
The order moves from tally groups of five to six frequencies, a scaled bar chart and seven chart questions. Keeping the made-up week separate from any later observation prevents pupils from describing supplied practice data as their own survey findings.
Spare Pencil
Use the printed grid and one frequency at a time; model the robin bar as three and a half squares before pupils draw the remaining bars. A verbal comparison with the chart can precede written answers without changing the data task.
Helpful Highlighter
The bird counts are labelled as made up, so Q7’s possible explanations are hypotheses rather than causes established by the chart. Before a real survey, pupils still need an agreed location, time window, duration and consistent counting method.