Sum of Two Dice - Theoretical Probability
This activity can be completed either before or after the Sum of Two Dice activity.
Design a sampler with two counter devices. Each counter runs from 1 to 6.
Take time to examine the results case table. Note that I sorted the sum attribute in
ascending order.
In the plot, the outcomes for each distinct sum were combined. This may seem
tedious but it gives the student a concrete representation of the triangle model
shown in the Sum of Two dice activity (page 2).
KG Shafer LLC, Summer 2012
1
Sum of Two Dice - Theoretical Probability
The count and percent tools on a plot with vertical bins can be used to show the
theoretical probability for each sum. Note that the probability of getting a sum of 8
is 14% or 5/36 (we can count the five cases).
A box array is a
good choice when
illustrating the
sample space for
this experiment.
We can see the
probability of each
event is 1 out of 36
or 3%.
The divider and counter tools can
be used on a dot plot to indicate
the number of outcomes with a
sum greater than 8.
P(sum > 8) = 28%
KG Shafer LLC, Summer 2012
2