I gave Taylor three groups of data and told her to calculate the mean and median for each group. The data groups had been constructed to contain one group where the mean and median were close in value, a second group where the mean was much higher than the median, and a third group where the mean was much lower than the median. I showed her how the groups' differences could be explained by the presence of outliers in the second and third groups.
After a discussion on median, mean, and outliers, I asked Taylor to visit the U.S. Census website and look up various tables and charts including doctors per 10,000 individuals, damage done by hurricanes per state, and alligator attacks over time in Florida. I told her that making judgements based on a single variable is usually a mistake. There was no assignment.