Who should win extreme weight loss competitions? In the TV game show The Biggest Loser, contestants compete to lose the greatest percent of body weight. While some praised the show as a helpful source of inspiration, others criticized it as an unrealistic and unhealthy example of how to lose weight.
In this lesson, students use linear functions and lines-of-best-fit to predict results from Season 8 of The Biggest Loser and discuss whether such examples of extreme weight loss are realistic and sustainable.
Students will
Create and interpret scatterplots
Estimate a line of best fit and use it to make predictions
Appreciate how the precision of a line-of-best fit changes as more data is added
Before you begin
Please consider strategies you might use to create a welcoming environment for students, both those who struggle with their weight and those who don’t. One strategy we find helpful is to think about – and to describe – obesity as describing a body rather than a person; “fat” as something a body carries rather than something a person is. Still, if you think that no matter how conscientious you are, there will be students who make fun of others, it might be best to skip this lesson until you’re confident students will handle it maturely.
How should the winner of The Biggest Loser be chosen? Students compare pounds lost vs. percent lost, and analyze historical data to determine which method produces the fairest game.
Topic:
Quantities (Q), Ratios and Proportional Relationships (RP), Statistics and Probability (SP)
How has the length of popular movies changed over time? Students use scatterplots to examine linear and nonlinear patterns in data and make predictions about the future.
What factors influence homelessness in a city? Students interpret linear models to analyze how income, rent, and homelessness have changed in the past two decades in various U.S. cities.
Topic:
Statistics and Probability (SP)
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Mathalicious lessons provide teachers with an opportunity to teach standards-based math through real-world topics that students care about.
How have video game consoles changed over time? Students create exponential models to predict the speed of video game processors over time, compare their predictions to observed speeds, and consider the consequences as digital simulations become increasingly lifelike.
Topic:
Building Functions (BF), Interpreting Categorical and Quantitative Data (ID), Interpreting Functions (IF), Linear, Quadratic, and Exponential Models (LE), Seeing Structure in Expressions (SSE)