1. Now we come to a cool subject. This helps us understand
all sorts of things. We’ll learn more about this in Maths
too. It’s all about understanding that different things
have different chances of happening – that is, we need
a good idea of how likely they are to happen.
Yes kids, Joe is right, we are going to talk about
Risk behaviour
and probability.
(Probability is just a fancy word for ‘chance’.)
We’ve covered risk-taking behaviour and
you probably have a good idea of what
probability means, but we’re going to see if
we can tie them together…
Grade 7 | Unit 7.1 | Page 13
Unit 7.1
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2. Let’s go through some scenarios to see if we can get
to grips with probability…
• What is the probability of being struck by lighting
when you are inside your home? 100% certain?
50% likely? 0%, i.e. certain that it won’t happen?
• What is the probability of being struck by lightning
when outside in the open veld during a thunder
storm? Is it higher or lower than being inside
your home?
Grade 7 | Unit 7.1 | Page 14
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3. Here are some trickier questions.…(and very relevant
ones)
• What is the probability of a young person
developing an alcohol addiction after drinking
a strong brandy?
• What is the probability of an older person in his
60s developing an addiction to alcohol after
drinking a strong brandy?
• What is the probability of a young person
developing an addiction to alcohol after getting
drunk most weekends?
There are different probabilities depending on:
• your choice
• your personality
• the circumstances and
• sometimes sheer luck!
Grade 7 | Unit 7.1 | Page 15
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