Illuminations: Look at Me

Look at Me

Making Glyphs

In this lesson, students learn a powerful way to display data—using a glyph. They collect data and create pictures using the data. Students also interpet glyphs made by other students.

Learning Objectives
 
Students will:
  • make a glyph based on personal information
  • interpret glyphs made by other students

Materials
 
Crayons
Paper plates
Making Glyphs Overhead

Instructional Plan

To begin the lesson, pass out paper plates and crayons to each student. Inform the students that they will create glyphs--a new way to represent data.

Note: Glyphs are a fairly new way to show several pieces of data at once. They can be created in two dimensions as is done in this lesson, or in three dimensions with a medium such as clay. In this lesson, they are a means of presenting multiple data bits about the students.] Tell the students they are going to draw a special paper plate picture that will include lots of information about themselves.

Give the following directions, pausing after each one so that the students have time to complete that part of the drawing. (Making a glyph involves the logical skill of classification--a student must decide which groups he or she belongs to in order to complete the picture. Modeling this activity as you give the instructions may help students with different learning styles.)

  1. On your paper plate, draw a circle for your face and two eyes. Make an iris in each eye and color it the color of your eyes.
  2. On the rim of the plate, draw hair the color of your hair.
  3. Draw your nose on the plate. If you have freckles, draw some on your face. If you do not, do not draw any.
  4. If you wear glasses, draw some around your eyes. If you do not, do not draw any.
  5. If you brought your lunch today, draw your mouth in a smile. If you did not, draw your mouth like a zero.
  6. Now add eyebrows to your face. If you have any pets, draw them straight across. If you do not have any pets, draw your eyebrows curved.

These steps are also available on the Making Glyphs Overhead, which you may choose to project for students as they are working individually.

Making Glyphs Overhead Making Glyphs Overhead

When the students are ready, encourage them to discuss the glyphs in small groups. Then call the class together and post the glyphs where all can see them. Ask the class what they notice about the drawings. The Guiding Questions below can prompt this discussion. You may wish to pick one glyph at random and ask whether the students can determine whose glyph it is.

Now display a paper plate that you have drawn about yourself and ask the class what they can tell about you from the picture.

 

 

In the example above, the teacher:

  • Has brown eyes
  • Has black hair
  • Does have reckles
  • Wears glasses
  • Did not bring his lunch today
  • Does not have pets

Questions for Students
 

How many students in our class have freckles?

[Answers will depend upon the student data.]

How many students in our class wear glasses?

[Answers will depend upon the student data.]

Suppose I want to find out how many students brought their lunch today. How would I do that by looking at the glyph?

[Look at the mouth. If it is a smile, then the student brought a lunch.]

How can you use the glyph to determine if a student has a pet?

[Look at the eyebrows. If they are straight, the student has pets.]

How would you help a friend read your glyph?

[Student answers may vary, but students should be able to review the basic components of their glyphs.]

Assessment Options
 
  1. The Questions for Students provide information about the ability of individual students to make a glyph, to gather data from a glyph someone else has made, and to discuss similarities and differences among glyphs.
  2. You may wish to add comments on this new objective to your Class Notes recording sheet for this unit. These notes may be helpful as you plan future units on data.
  3. The glyphs that your students made can make an intriguing hallway display and can be later added to their portfolios.

Extensions
 
  1. Provide the teacher in the buddy class with the questions and ask him or her to have that class make glyphs to share with your class. You may wish to have the students who were buddies in the last lesson compare their glyphs.
  2. The theme of the glyph is arbitrary, and you may wish to choose one that is suitable for the season and climate in which you do this lesson. You might choose snowmen, a spring or fall scene, or a jack-o'-lantern, for example, as themes. The data collected can also vary depending on what you want to display about the class. This is a versatile data representation tool that you may use several times during the year. It is especially appropriate as a "getting to know you" activity during the first week of school.

Teacher Reflection
 
  • Which students could easily classify data about themselves and draw the appropriate indicator on the glyph?
  • Which students could gather data by looking at another's glyph?
  • Did most students enjoy the activity of making and reading glyphs? How can I use this technique in other parts of the curriculum?
  • Are any students still having difficulty with the objectives of this lesson? What additional instructional experiences do they need?
  • What will I do differently the next time that I teach this lesson?

NCTM Standards and Expectations
 
Data Analysis & Probability Pre-K-2
  1. Pose questions and gather data about themselves and their surroundings.
  2. Represent data using concrete objects, pictures, and graphs.
  3. Sort and classify objects according to their attributes and organize data about the objects.
This lesson prepared by Edie Skipper and Patty Williams.
  
1 period   

NCTM Resources

Principles and Standards for School Mathematics
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics Thinkfinity Verizon Foundation
More and Better Mathematics for All Students
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