The Probable Pen

The goal of this experiment is to answer the question, "How many cereal boxes did you have to buy in order to collect a complete set of 6 colored pens?"

To simulate buying a cereal box with a colored pen inside, you will roll a die.   Each time you roll the die you have purchased 1 box of cereal.  The number code for the pen color inside is as follows :

Continue rolling the die, recording your data in the chart below, until you have collected at least 1 pen of each color, thus completing a set of pens.

To record your data, place a tick mark into the chart below, after each roll, under the appropriate pen color.  Remember to stop as soon as you have collected at least one of each color.

How many cereal boxes did you need to buy in order to collect the entire set of 6 pens? _______

Questions about the histogram.  (see histogram on web page "final results")

Remember "number of rolls" stands for the number of cereal boxes purchased.

1. How many students completed their set of pens:

                after 22 rolls? _______

                after 15 rolls? _______

                after  6  rolls? _______

2. What was the most popular number of rolls made in order to

    complete the set of pens? _______

{Teacher's}    {Probability Tour}    {Birthday Problem}    {Probable Pen}    {Back To DI Math}

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