A life-size horizontal grid prepared ahead of time (4 feet x 10 feet); labels of four choices of ice cream (place a label at the beginning of each row of the horizontal grid); and a label for the question, "What is your favorite ice cream flavor?"

Ask students to stand around the grid and ask, "What is your favorite ice cream flavor?" Ask students to complete the graph by standing in the row that corresponds to their choice. Tell students they have just completed a "human survey" and that they became the answers to the question.

Ask children if this is a good way to graph if there were more students. Elicit several responses. Students will likely say that a grid big enough to hold a lot of students might not fit in the classroom. Ask students to think about ways this information could be collected in a more efficient way. Then ask students to share their thinking with the class.

Model a survey board by preparing a chart that has the following question at the top, "What is your favorite ice cream flavor?" Underneath the question, list the four choices from the floor grid. Ask students to count the students together in each row of the floor grid. Record this using tally marks on the survey board. Tell students that the survey board is one way to collect information about the class. Then ask students to tell one thing they notice about the data collected. Allow about 5 minutes for this discussion.