The range shows how spread out a set of data is. Range = largest value − smallest value. For 4, 9, 12, 15, 20, the range is 20 − 4 = 16.
Two sets of data can have the same mean but very different ranges. Test scores of 48, 50, 52 and 20, 50, 80 both have a mean of 50, but the second set is much more spread out. A small range means the data is consistent.
Worked example
Find the range of 18, 7, 25, 11, 9
- Largest value: 25. Smallest value: 7.
- 25 − 7 = 18.
Answer:18
Key words
- range
- largest minus smallest
- spread
- how far apart the values are
- consistent
- values close together
Practise this
New questions every time.
Common Core-referenced: 6.SP.A.3