Data analysis tasks involve organizing and looking for patterns in various types of data such as facts, numbers, and words. Students are provided with raw materials and asked to draw their own conclusions based on the data. Examples include science projects, statistical analysis of baseball players, measuring plant growth over time, analyzing poetry, and surveying music preferences. Analyzing real data makes learning more meaningful by providing a visual way to see information and teaching problem solving skills. Tools for data analysis include numbers, tables and graphs using programs like InspireData, Excel and Tinkerplots, as well as visualizing verbal data using Wordle, Tagxedo and other visualization tools.