The Bell Curve

The bell curve is a way of plotting data so that we can tell how common certain types of numbers are in a group. It looks like a bell because things taper off on either side. Imagine if you had a box filled with balls. Most of them are the same color, size, and shape--but some of them are different. That's like a bell curve. The most common numbers are in the middle--like all of the same balls--and then things get less common as you move away from the middle. The peak of the curve (the top of the bell) is the most common number, and the sides of the curve are the less common numbers.