Reading a Tree Diagram for Possible Choices Worksheet Download
This worksheet shows a tree diagram branching from a person to two choices, and from each of those to two more, then asks which of four pairings is possible - or which is impossible - for that person. The two branches deliberately carry different children, so every option names only items that appear somewhere in the diagram: an impossible pairing is one whose two items both appear but never on the same path. That means students have to trace a branch rather than scan the options for an unfamiliar word. Contexts rotate between outfits, lunches and sundaes, and half the questions ask for the impossible pairing while half ask for the possible one, so the odd option out is sometimes the answer and sometimes not.
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About this worksheet
Students trace the branches of a tree diagram to decide which of four pairings it can or cannot produce.
Student objectives
- Trace a branch of a tree diagram from the top down to a single outcome
- Recognize that two items can both appear in a diagram and still never occur together
- Decide whether a given pairing belongs to the sample space
- Tell possible outcomes from impossible ones when both use items that are shown
Everyday practice
- Check whether an outfit you have in mind can be made from the clothes you packed
- Work out whether the meal you want is possible from a menu's mains and sides
- Decide if an ice cream and topping pairing is one the shop actually sells
- See which uniform combinations a team is allowed to wear