Zoo Challenge 1:
For your first challenge, Animals Inc. wants you to choose the animals you think should be in their zoo. First, you need to read the letter Animals Inc. sent to you. Within this letter, you will find all of the information you will need to construct your zoo.

Dear Applicant,

      Hello. First, we would like to thank you for applying for the Zoo Coordinator position at Animals Inc. As part of your application process, we have created a challenge that we want you to tackle. Below is a description of the task.

Animals Inc. has $1,000,000 to purchase animals for their new zoo. The animals you are allowed to purchase and their prices are listed below. You must be within $1,000 of the $1,000,000, and you must purchase at least 10 different animals. When purchasing an animal keep in mind the following:

• the gender of the animal (do you want all males, all females, or an even balance?);
• the number of each type of animal you would like to purchase; and
• your reasoning for purchasing that animal.
  

Once you have chosen your animals, create a spreadsheet of your purchases.

Next, write an expression for each type of animal purchased that represents the total amount of dollars spent purchasing that animal.

Good luck, be creative, but most of all, have fun!

With Sincere Gratitude,
Animals Inc. Hiring Staff

Zoo Challenge 2:
Once you have chosen the animals you want to purchase for your zoo, you will need to:

1. Use the Internet to research the average weight, the average lifespan, and the average gestation and/or incubation period for each chosen animal.
   
2. Create one chart that displays all of your collected data. Your chart should include the following:
   • the name of each animal;
   • the average weight of each animal;
   • the average lifespan of each animal; and
   • the average gestation and/or incubation period of each animal.
     
3. Create a frequency table for the average weight, the average life span, and the average gestation and/or incubation period. You will have a total of 3 tables.

Upon completing your research, answer the following questions:

1. What are the most and least common weight intervals of the animals purchased?
   
2. What are the most and least common intervals for lifespan of the animals?
   
3. What are the most and least common intervals for gestation period of the animals purchased?
   

Zoo Challenge 3:
Now it is time to put all of your information together and create a presentation. Your presentation should include:

• a listing of the animals you chose and an explanation of why you chose them;
• a picture of each animal you chose in your presentation; and
• your spreadsheet, calculations, and frequency tables.

Zoo Challenge 1:
Your spreadsheet should include the following:

• each type of animal purchased;
  
• the total amount spent on each category of purchased animals; and
  
• the total amount spent.

Remember, when writing expressions, you need a defined variable, numbers, and at least one operation. For example, an expression for the total amount spent on zebras might be $15,000z, where z = total number of zebras purchased.

Zoo Challenge 2:

• An animal’s gestation period is the amount of time the animal carries the infant in the womb. If an animal hatches from an egg, the animal’s incubation period is the amount of time the animal spends in the egg before hatching.
  
• Refer to prerequisite skills, p. 715 in your textbook for a reminder on how to create a frequency table.
  

Zoo Challenge 3:
Some of the presentations that you could create are:

• a PowerPoint^® presentation,
  
• a poster,
  
• a video,
  
• a newspaper/magazine article, or
  
• a professional portfolio.