Session 7 — Data Solves Problems

Duration: 60 min · Format: live online · Ages: 8–11

Session goal: by the end, students can use data to decide something fairly, turn that decision into a simple solution, and sketch an app idea that shows the answer.

Before class — prep (5 min)

• Have the decision diagram below ready to share on screen (question → data → decision).
• Open Scratch in a tab — you'll demo a sprite saying the winning answer.
• Ask students to have paper and a pencil ready for their app sketch.

Agenda

0:00 · Hook (5 min)

Ask the class and take a few answers (chat or unmute):

• "Your class wants one snack for a party, but everyone's arguing. How could you decide fairly, without fighting?"

Let them guess, then nudge: you already learned the tool last session — collect data! Tell them that today data stops being just pretty pictures and starts solving problems.

0:05 · Teach — Data helps you decide (12 min)

Explain: instead of guessing or arguing, you collect data and let it point to the answer. Share this diagram:

1. Question — "Which snack for the party?"
2. Data — survey the class, make a chart.
3. Decision — pick the winner. Fair and clear.

Land the name: using data to decide is called making an evidence-based decision — scientists, doctors, and game designers all do it.

⚠ Watch for the shortcut: students may want to skip straight to a decision from a guess. Stress that the decision has to come from the data they collected, not from what they personally hope wins.

Ask: "Why is deciding with a survey fairer than the loudest person just choosing?" (Answer: everyone's vote counts and the result is based on evidence, not volume.)

0:17 · Teach — From decision to solution (13 min)

Explain: once you know the answer, you can build a simple solution — and it doesn't need code. A solution can be:

• an app idea (a screen that shows the answer),
• a plan or a poster,
• a small Scratch project.

Give the example: an app called "Snack Picker" that shows the class's winning snack with a big happy picture.

Demo (optional): open Scratch and make a sprite say the winning answer when you click it.

Ask: "Name one everyday problem where an app that shows an answer would help you." (Take 2–3 answers.)

0:30 · Activity — Design a data helper (18 min)

Have students design their own data helper.

1. Pick a real problem at home or school (what to watch, where to sit, which book to read).
2. Write the question and the data they'd collect to answer it.
3. Sketch a simple app screen on paper: a title, the chart, and the answer in big letters.

Circulate (or invite a few to share their sketch): check that the answer clearly comes from the data they planned to collect, and that the screen has a title.

Want to build it? Students who finish early can open Scratch and make a sprite say the winning answer when clicked.

0:48 · Check for understanding (7 min)

Ask these aloud or drop them in the chat. Answer key (for you):

1. What's a fair way to settle an argument about choices? → Collect data (a survey), chart it, and pick the winner — an evidence-based decision.
2. Does a "solution" always need code? → No — it can be an app idea, a plan, a poster, or a small Scratch project.
3. Name one job that uses data to decide. → Lots! Doctors, scientists, coaches, game designers, shop owners…

0:55 · Wrap-up + homework (5 min)

• Ask one student to finish: "Data helped me decide…"
• Homework — Decide with your family: find a real decision at home this week (movie night? dinner?). Collect a little data from your family, then decide together using the data. Bring the story to Session 8 — the big Block 2 project.

Teaching notes

• Correct this misconception: "a solution means a finished computer program." Reframe: a solution is any way to help — an idea, a plan, or a poster counts.
• Fast finishers (extension): organise before you analyse — put the data in a clean table in Google Sheets (one row per person; messy data → wrong answers). Then do a quick EDA: ask three questions of the data (most common? average? any surprise?) using =MAX, =AVERAGE, =COUNTIF. For a tiny code challenge in Google Colab:

python votes = [5, 7, 3] print("Total:", sum(votes)) print("Winner has:", max(votes), "votes") That's analysing data with Python. - Low-tech fallback: the whole activity is paper-based — the app sketch needs no device. Screen-share the Scratch demo yourself if students can't open it.

Vocabulary

Resources

• Scratch — build a simple interactive helper.
• Google Sheets — collect and chart your decision data.
• Code.org — App Lab — peek at how apps are made (made for ages 13+, so explore it with a grown-up).
• Google Colab — try the tiny Python challenge (extension).

Next session

Session 8 — Tell a Data Story: the big Block 2 project — students ask, collect, chart, and tell the story of what they found.