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Big Data & Data Science

Twelfth graders learn what data scientists do — collect huge amounts of data, clean it, analyze it for patterns, visualize the results, and turn it into decisions. It is one of the fastest-growing fields in computing. They explore the pipeline, then plan a data question of their own.

Grade 12Big Data & Data Science55 minutes1 class periodCSTA / ISTEExplicit teaching4 StandardsCSTA
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Describe data science.
  • ✓Walk the data pipeline.
  • ✓Value clean data.
  • ✓Ask a data question.
Essential Question

How do data scientists turn big, messy data into useful insight?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Explore · Interactive

The Data-Science Pipeline

Project this and tap each. Have students explore how data science turns data into insight.

💡 Explore the data-science pipeline — tap eachTry it

The Lesson · Explicit teaching

55 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Hook — Drowning in Data

6 min

The world makes huge amounts of data daily — how do we make sense of it?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Pose the question.
  • Share ideas.
  • Set the goal.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Think.
  • Share.
  • Get ready.
2

Use — Data Science

13 min

Students learn.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to The Data-Science Pipeline.
  • Tap each stage.
  • Note cleaning comes first.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Tap each.
  • Say.
  • Note it.
3

Modify — Trace It

14 min

Students practice.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name each stage.
  • Say why cleaning matters.
  • Pick a good chart type.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Name.
  • Say.
  • Pick.
4

Create — Ask It

15 min

Students apply.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Write a data question.
  • Name the data you would need.
  • Plan how to visualize it.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Write.
  • Name.
  • Plan.
5

Reflect — Reflect

7 min

Students close.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name a pipeline stage.
  • Say the goal of data science.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Name one.
  • Say it.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the CSTA K-12 Computer Science Standards and the ISTE Standards for Students.

CSTA
3A-DA-11

Create models to analyze data and find patterns.

CSTA
3A-DA-12

Create visualizations to communicate insight.

CSTA
3B-DA-05

Use data analysis to propose solutions.

ISTE
5b

Collect, clean, and represent data.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Pipeline diagram.
  • Frame: "first collect, then ___."
  • Use a simple dataset.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Use 3 core stages.
  • Use a visual.
  • One dataset example.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Clean a messy dataset.
  • Make a real chart.
  • Explain correlation vs cause.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Screen / board
  • 📊Pipeline cards
  • 💻The Data-Science Pipeline
  • 📈Sample dataset
  • 📓Notebooks
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

data sciencefinding insight in databig datavery large datasetscollectgather datacleanfix errors in dataanalyzelook for patternsvisualizeshow data as chartsinsighta useful findingdataseta collection of data
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
What comes right after collecting data?
Cleaning it — fixing errors and gaps.
QUESTION 2
What is the goal of data science?
Turning big, messy data into decisions people can act on.
QUESTION 3
Why visualize data?
Charts make the findings clear to others.

Reflect: big data & data science.

Have students write a data question and plan how to visualize it. A printable data-question sheet is in the CS library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Big Data & Data ScienceFlip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
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Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Big Data & Data ScienceQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
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Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Big Data & Data SciencePrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: analyze, big data, clean, collect, data science, dataset, insight, visualize
  1. look for patterns
  2. gather data
  3. a collection of data
  4. fix errors in data
  5. finding insight in data
  6. show data as charts
  7. a useful finding
  8. very large datasets

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What comes right after collecting data?
  2. What is the goal of data science?
  3. Why visualize data?
Answer key — Part A: 1) analyze · 2) collect · 3) dataset · 4) clean · 5) data science · 6) visualize · 7) insight · 8) big data
Part B: 1) Cleaning it — fixing errors and gaps. 2) Turning big, messy data into decisions people can act on. 3) Charts make the findings clear to others.