In 2013 The Rolling Stones earned $26 215 121.71. A pretty large number. Your Stage 3 students can discover amazing large number facts hidden behind their favourite pop groups. Long ago, my favourite group was the Rolling Stones. I was fascinated to see that in 2013 they still earned so much money. What are the 10 favourite pop groups in your class this year? How will they find out? Who will collect this data? How much did each of these groups earn last year? How do you know? How will you find out? Who will do this? Can they estimate first the order for the top 10 earners? Once you have your ten $ amounts you can put them into ascending or descending order, find the $ differences between the 1st and the 2nd highest earners. You can also create a column graph – what will the scale look like? Why? What will be the title of your graph?
Challenge your students to create further mathematical questions e.g. Who is the highest earning pop group of all time? Who is the highest earning individual performer this year? Ever? Who is the highest earning musician this year? Ever? Do pop stars earn more than other musicians?