Mathematics

Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

LESSON 3.3
The Normal Curve
Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Test Your Prerequisite Skills 2

DepEd Competency 3

Objectives 3

Warm-Up! 3

Learn about It! 4

Let’s Practice 8

Check Your Understanding 17

Key Points 18

Photo Credits 18

Bibliography 19
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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

Lesson 3.3
The Normal Curve

Fig. 1. The Galton Box

Introduction
A natural order can still be observed even on random events. Take the Galton Box for
example. In this box, a number of beads flows through the wooden pegs. As the beads
accumulate in the sections below the pegs, the beads tend to form a bell-shaped curve. This
device allows us to visualize the natural order in the chaos of randomness. We refer to this
bell-shaped curve as the normal curve.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

In this lesson, we will learn more about the normal curve.

Test Your Prerequisite Skills

Before you get started, answer the following items on a separate sheet of paper. This will
help you assess your prior knowledge and practice some skills that you will need in studying
this lesson. Show your complete solution.

1. Determine the scores one, two, and three standard deviations above the mean given
the values of 𝜇 and 𝜎. Assume the distribution is normal.
a. 𝜇 = 25, 𝜎 = 3
b. 𝜇 = 90, 𝜎 = 1.5
c. 𝜇 = 23.3, 𝜎 = 2.3
2. Determine the scores one, two, and three standard deviations below the mean given
the values of 𝜇 and 𝜎. Assume the distribution is normal.
a. 𝜇 = 50, 𝜎 = 2
b. 𝜇 = 23.1, 𝜎 = 2.5
c. 𝜇 = 15.3, 𝜎 = 1.2
3. Convert the given decimal to percent.
a. 0.6471
b. 0.9476
c. 0.3172
d. 0.9974

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

DepEd Competency
At the end of the lesson, the learners should be able to construct a normal
curve.

Objectives
At the end of the lesson, you should be able to do the following:

● Construct a normal curve.

● Find the area of a region under the normal curve.

● Solve real-life problems involving the normal curve.

Warm-Up!

Heads Up!

Materials
● Coin

Instructions
1. This activity will be done as a class. Assign someone who will preside as facilitator.
2. Every student in the class will flip a coin four times and count how many times a
head appeared.
3. The facilitator will record the number of people who got 0 head, 1 head, 2 heads, 3
heads, and 4 heads.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

4. Using the information in step 3, create a bar graph with the number of heads on the
𝑥-axis and the frequency of people on the 𝑦-axis.
5. Observe the graph. How will you describe the graph that you just made?

Learn about It!

The bar graph that you created in Warm Up! should most likely
resemble the graph on the right. As you can observe, its shape
resemble a bell. This is the shape of the distribution of a normally
distributed set of data.

A normal curve or a bell curve is a graph that represents the probability density function of
the normal probability distribution. The normal curve is also called the Gaussian curve after
the mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss.

Essential Question
Why is a normal curve said to be normal?

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

The graph above is an example of a normal curve. Observe that the mean 𝜇 is in the middle
of the curve. The scores indicated on the left of 𝜇 are the scores one, two, and three standard
deviations below the mean while the scores indicated on the right of 𝜇 are the scores one,
two, and three standard deviations above the mean. The highest point of the curve is always
above the mean of the distribution. Notice that there are more frequencies of scores near the
mean while there are fewer frequencies of scores far from the mean.

Note that the normal curve is symmetric. This means that 50% of the scores are less than the
mean and 50% of the scores are greater than the mean.

The normal curve requires two parameters: the mean and the standard deviation. The graph
of the normal curve is defined by the probability density function

1 1 𝑥−𝜇 2
− ( )
𝑓(𝑥) = ∙ 𝑒 2 𝜎
𝜎√2𝜋

where
𝑓(𝑥) is the height of the curve of the particular values of 𝑥,
𝑥 is any score in the distribution,
𝜇 is the mean of the random variable,
𝜎 is the standard deviation of the random variable,
𝜋 is a constant approximately equal to 3.1416, and
𝑒 is the natural number which is approximately equal to 2.71828.

A normal distribution with a higher standard deviation is more spread out while a normal
distribution with a lower standard deviation is more compact.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

Empirical Rule in a Normal Curve

Recall that in the previous lesson, the empirical rule states that 68.26% of the scores fall
within one standard deviation away from the mean, 95.44% of the scores fall within two
standard deviations away from the mean, and 99.74% of the scores fall within three standard
deviations away from the mean. In a normal curve, these percentages are represented as the
area bounded by the graph of the normal curve and the horizontal axis.

The total area bounded by the normal curve is 1. This represents 100% of the scores of the
normal distribution. The area of the region to the left of the mean is 0.5 and the area of the
region to the right of the mean is 0.5 as well.

𝜇−𝜎 𝜇 𝜇+𝜎

The area of the region between the scores one standard deviation away from the mean is
0.6826.

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𝜇 − 2𝜎 𝜇 𝜇 + 2𝜎

The area of the region between the scores two standard deviations away from the mean is
0.9544.

𝜇 − 3𝜎 𝜇 𝜇 + 3𝜎

The area of the region between the scores three standard deviations away from the mean is
0.9974.

Essential Question
What is the importance of the empirical rule in finding the area of the region
under the normal curve?

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

Let’s Practice
Example 1
In a normally distributed data, find the area of the scores more than one standard deviation
above the mean.

Solution
The area of the normal curve within one standard deviation from the mean is 0.6826.

Since the total area of the normal curve is 1, we can obtain the area of the scores more than
one standard deviation away from the mean by subtracting 0.6826 from 1. That is,

1 − 0.6826 = 0.3174

Since we are only looking for the area of the scores more than one standard deviation away
above the mean, we divide 0.3174 by 2. The reason why we divide by 2 is because the normal
curve is symmetric.

0.3174 ÷ 2 = 0.1587

Therefore, the area of the scores more than one standard deviation above the mean is
𝟎. 𝟏𝟓𝟖𝟕.

Try It Yourself!
In a normally distributed set of data, find the area of the normal scores more than two
standard deviations below the mean.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

Example 2
A normally distributed set of data has a mean of 𝜇 = 23.6 and a standard deviation of
𝜎 = 2.76. Construct the normal curve of the data.

Solution
Step 1: Solve for the scores one, two, and three standard deviations away from the
mean.

One standard deviation away from the mean:

𝜇 + 𝜎 = 23.6 + 2.76
𝜇 + 𝜎 = 26.36

𝜇 − 𝜎 = 23.6 − 2.76
𝜇 − 𝜎 = 20.84

Two standard deviations away from the mean:

𝜇 + 2𝜎 = 23.6 + 2(2.76)
𝜇 + 2𝜎 = 29.12

𝜇 − 2𝜎 = 23.6 − 2(2.76)
𝜇 − 2𝜎 = 18.08

Three standard deviations away from the mean:

𝜇 + 3𝜎 = 23.6 + 3(2.76)
𝜇 + 3𝜎 = 31.88

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

𝜇 − 3𝜎 = 23.6 − 3(2.76)
𝜇 − 3𝜎 = 15.32

Step 2: Construct the normal curve using set of scores from Step 1.

Using the mean as the center and the set of scores in Step 1, we can construct
the normal curve as follows.

Try It Yourself!
A normally distributed set of data has a mean of 𝜇 = 31.56 and a standard deviation of 𝜎 =
4.15. Construct the normal curve of the data.

Example 3
Given a normally distributed set of scores with 𝜇 = 13.5 and 𝜎 = 2.4, find the area of the
normal curve between the scores 𝑋1 = 8.7 and 𝑋2 = 11.1.

Solution
Step 1: Locate the scores 8.7 and 11.1 in the normal distribution.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

Since both 8.7 and 11.1 are less than 13.5, these scores are located below the
mean. Using the standard deviation 𝜎 = 2.4, solve for the scores one, two, and
three standard deviations below the mean.

𝜇 − 𝜎 = 13.5 − 2.4
𝜇 − 𝜎 = 11.1

𝜇 − 2𝜎 = 13.5 − 2(2.4)
𝜇 − 2𝜎 = 8.7

𝜇 − 3𝜎 = 13.5 − 3(2.4)
𝜇 − 3𝜎 = 6.3

Thus, the scores 11.1 and 8.7 are scores one and two standard deviations below
the mean, respectively.

Step 2: Obtain the area of the scores within one standard deviation from the mean and
the area of the scores within two standard deviations from the mean.

By the empirical rule, the area of the scores within one standard deviation from
the mean is 0.6826.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

Moreover, the area of the scores within two standard deviations from the mean
is 0.9544.

Step 3: Obtain the area of the scores between 8.7 and 11.1.

In order to get the area, we must first obtain the area of the scores between
one and two standard deviations away from the mean, as illustrated in the
normal curve below.

To get this, subtract the areas 0.9544 and 0.6826. The resulting area is 0.2718.

The area between 8.7 and 11.1 is the shaded area shown below.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

To get this area, we divide 0.2718 by 2.

0.2718 ÷ 2 = 0.1359

Thus, the area between the scores 𝑋1 = 8.7 and 𝑋2 = 11.1 is 𝟎. 𝟏𝟑𝟓𝟗.

Try It Yourself!
Given a normally distributed set of scores with 𝜇 = 24.3 and 𝜎 = 4.5, find the area of the
normal curve between 33.3 and 37.8.

Real-world Problems
Example 4
A university gives out scholarships to students who scored
more than two standard deviations above the mean score
of all students in their admission test. What is the
percentage of the students that received the scholarship?
Assume that the data is normally distributed.

Solution
Step 1: Make a plan in solving the word problem.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

To determine the percentage of students that received the scholarship, we

have to determine the area of the scores under the normal curve that represent
this group of students. The area represents the percentage of students that
belong to that group. Since their scores in the admission test are more than
two standard deviations above the mean, we can easily illustrate this on a
normal curve.

Step 2: Illustrate the percentage of the people as an area in a normal curve.

Since their scores are more two standard deviations above the mean, we have
the following shaded region.

Step 3: Solve for the area of the shaded region in the normal curve.

First, determine the area of the scores within two standard deviations away
from the mean.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

Since this area is bounded by the scores two standard deviations away from
the mean, the area of this region is 0.9544.

Subtract this area from the total area under the normal curve. The shaded
region below represents the area that will be left.

1 − 0.9544 = 0.0456

The area of the shaded region is 0.0456. However, the area that we need is the
area of the scores more than two standard deviations above the mean. Since
the normal curve is symmetric, we can divide this value by 2 so that we will be
left with the area that we need. The shaded region below represents the area
that we are looking for.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

Divide 0.0456 by 2 to determine the area of the shaded region.

0.0456 ÷ 2 = 0.0228

Therefore, the area of the region is 0.0228.

Step 4: Convert the area into a percentage.

Multiply 0.0228 by 100% so that we will know the percentage of students who
receive the scholarship.

0.0228 × 100% = 2.28%

Thus, only 𝟐. 𝟐𝟖% of the students will receive the scholarship given by the university during
the admission test.

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

Try It Yourself!
A factory produce batteries of a certain smartphone. They
ensure the quality of their products through a rigorous
quality check—batteries whose energy charge is more
than three standard deviations below the mean are
rejected. If there are 15 750 batteries produced every day, how many batteries are expected
to be rejected? Assume that the data is normally distributed.

Check Your Understanding

A. Construct the normal curve of the following set of data given its mean and standard
deviation.
1. 𝜇 = 13.4 and 𝜎 = 2.1
2. 𝜇 = 27.61 and 𝜎 = 3.45
3. 𝜇 = 12.3 and 𝜎 = 1.54
4. 𝜇 = 54.7 and 𝜎 = 3.15

B. Solve for the area of the region under the normal curve being described below.
1. Set M is a normally distributed set of scores with 𝜇 = 17.4 and 𝜎 = 2.5. What is the
area of the region between the scores 19.9 and 22.4?
2. Set N is a normally distributed set of scores with 𝜇 = 23.7 and 𝜎 = 4.1. What is the
area of the region between the scores 11.4 and 15.5?
3. Set O is a normally distributed set of scores with 𝜇 = 15.31 and 𝜎 = 3.71. What is
the area of the region to the left of 26.44?

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Grade 11 • Unit 3: The Normal Curve

C. The weight of the bread produced by a certain bakeshop has a mean of 𝜇 = 125 grams
and a standard deviation of 𝜎 = 30 grams. Breads are rejected if they weigh more than
185 grams or if they weigh less than 65 grams. What is the percentage of the breads
that are rejected?

Key Points

● A normal curve or a bell curve is a graph that represents the probability density
function of a normal probability distribution. It is also called a Gaussian curve—
named after the mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss.
● The empirical rule states that the area of the region between one standard deviation
away from the mean is 0.6826, two standard deviations away from the mean is 0.9544,
and three standard deviations away from the mean is 0.9974.

Photo Credits
Fig. 1. : The Galton Box by Matemateca IME-USP / Rodrigo Tetsuo Argenton is licensed under
CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

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Bibliography
Open Learning Initiative. “Concepts in Statistics – Normal Random Variables.” Accessed
September 9, 2018. https://courses.lumenlearning.com/wmopen-concepts-
statistics/chapter/introduction-to-normal-random-variables-1-of-6/

Pierce, Rod. “Normal Distribution”. Accessed September 13, 2018.

https://www.mathsisfun.com/data/standard-normal-distribution.html

Statistics Lectures. “Normal Curve and Empirical Rule. Accessed September 10, 2018.
http://www.statisticslectures.com/topics/normalcurve /

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