This video provides tips for teachers on helping students make sense of data to help them understand and work with data. It is based on the work of Kristin Hunter-Thomson of Dataspire.org and uses data from the My NASA Data Earth System Data Explorer.

Students interpret a double bar/column chart comparing the number of tropical cyclones in different locations.

Interpret a scatter plot to find patterns in the number of tropical cyclones from 1842 to 2018.

Learners will analyze and interpret a box plot and evaluate the spread of the data. Learners will compare it with a different visualization of the data to see how the two compare, discuss the limitations of the two types of data displays and formulate questions.

Interpret the map, or model, to find patterns in the occurrence of tropical cyclones from 1842 through 2018.

Students observe seasonal images of Monthly Leaf Area, looking for any changes that are occurring throughout the year.

In this mini-lesson, students analyze soil moisture quantities associated with Hurricane Harvey around Houston, Texas on August 25, 2017.

Compare a histogram and map to determine the differences in the information conveyed in each data display.

Students observe monthly images of changing vegetation patterns, looking for seasonal changes occurring throughout 2017. These data can be used by students to develop their own models of change.

Students learn how to estimate the "energy efficiency" of photosynthesis, or the amount of energy that plants absorb for any given location on Earth. This is the ratio of the amount of energy stored to the amount of light energy absorbed and is used to evaluate and model photosynthesis efficiency.