M&M GRAPH LESSON PLAN

Content Objectives:
• Use basic properties (identity, commutative, associative, order of operations) for addition and
subtraction.
• Develop strategies for adding and subtracting numbers and estimating sums and differences.
• Develop flexibility in solving problems by using mental computation, estimation, manipulatives, and
paper and pencil.
• Construct, organize and interpret bar graphs.

Language Objectives:
• Vocabulary: Students will use color words for sorting and graphing.
• Listening: Students will be able to identify parts of their graph and explain a finished graph to their
small group.
Goals
• Number and Operations - The student will model, identify, and compute with whole numbers.
• Data Analysis and Probability - The student will understand and use data and simple probability
concepts.

Key Vocabulary: color words, graph, classify, data, collect, sort, more, less

Building Background/Warm-up:
• Ask, “Who has eaten M&Ms?”’
• Visit www.mms.com/us/about/mmshistory/
• What colors of M&Ms are there?
• Predict how many M&Ms are in your bag. (see materials list) Put all predictions on the board. Tally
each prediction and create a graph showing the predictions.
• Predict what color there are the most of.

Materials; blank graph, crayons/markers, pencil, overhead or chalkboard, large paper to display graph, a small
bag of M&Ms for each student.

Practice Application:
• Introduction: Model the creation of a graph using the information collected about the students’ favorite
candy. (Take a poll, use a tally, make the graph on the overhead or chalkboard.
• Guided practice: Show students how to sort candy and graph it according to color.
• Independent practice: Students will continue graphing candy by color.

Review/Assessment:
• With a partner, students will share their results and explain the parts of the graph.
• The teacher will orally review the class graph checking for understanding.
• Students will be given a worksheet to complete.
 M&M Math

1. Do not open your bag yet. Guess how many M & M’s are in the bag. ________

2. Count the M & M’s. How many M & M’s are in the bag? _______

3. How far off was your guess? _______

4. Put your M & M’s into sets by color.Write the number of M & M’s you have in each set.

Green ______ Orange _______ Blue _______

Dark Brown _______ Red _______ Yellow ________

5. Do these problems:

Blue + Dark Brown =______ Orange + Green =______ Orange + Brown =______

Red + Orange =______ Red + Yellow = ______ Green + Blue = ______

Red + Green = ______ Yellow + Brown = ______ Red + Blue + Brown = ______

6. Put 15 M & M’s in a pile in front of you.

How many piles of four can you make? _____

How many are left over? _____

How many piles of seven can you make? _____

How many are left over? _____

How many piles of five can you make? _____

How many are left over? _____

How many piles of two can you make? _____

How many are left over? _____

7. Put two M & M’s in your mouth. How many are left? _____

8. Eat four more. How many M & M’s do you have left now?______

9. Use the information you have and graph the colors on the M & M’s chart.