GRADE 7

SUMMARIZED MODULE

SETS
Set-is a well-defined group of distinct objects, called elements that have a common
characteristic.
Well-defined – clearly stated or described.
Distinct – recognizably different in nature from something else of a similar type.
Element – the name given to an object within a set. ∈is the symbol for element read as “is an
element of”

Ways of writing sets:

1. Roster Notation or Listing method: Writing the elements of a set as a list, separated
by commas and enclosed within curly braces { }.

Set A = {1,2,3}
2. Set builder Notation: elements of the set are described.

Set A {x/x first three counting numbers} [read as “A is a set of x such that x is the first three
counting numbers”] or [read as “Set A contains the element x such that x is the first three
counting numbers”]
But wait, before you perform the activities in this module, take this simple test first to find out
how much you already know about the topic to be discussed.

WELL-DEFINED SETS

Example 1: The adviser of Grade 7-Sunflower thought of grouping the students in different
ways. How many groups would there be? If you were asked by the adviser to group 10
students, how will you group the 10 students?

The table shows the ages, birthday and gender of 10 students in Grade 7 – Sunflower.

Student in
7-Sunflower Age Birthday Gender

Maria 13 September 11 Girl

Marco 15 October 12 Boy
Xavier 15 September 10 Boy
Ana 13 October 9 Girl
Joan 13 December 7 Girl
Angel 15 September 6 Girl
Erica 12 November 9 Girl
Abe 13 October 19 Boy
Rommel 15 February 4 Boy
Oriel 14 November 8 Boy

Using the above data,

 1. List down the girls. Call the list as group A______________________________
2. List down the names of students whose age is 13. Call this group B. _________
3. List down the boys who love to dance as group C. ________________________
4. What help you in listing down the names in Groups A, B and C? _____________
5. Were you able to list down the names right away in Group A, B and C? _______

Listing down the names in groups A and B is easier than listing down the names in group C.
Identifying the boys who love to dance is difficult by just simply using the given data.
Groups A and B are examples of sets. Group A is a collection of girls in the given data.
Group B is a collection of students whose age is 13. The students in each group share a
common characteristic which is well-defined. Maria, Ana, Joan, Angel and Erica are elements
of Set A. Maria, Ana, Joan and Abe are elements of Set B. Set A and Set B can be represented
by:
A = {Maria, Ana, Joan, Angel, Erica}
The name of the set is A. The elements are Maria, Ana, Joan, Abe.
B = {Maria, Ana, Joan, Abe}
The name of the set is B. The elements are Maria, Ana, Joan, Abe

A capital letter is used to name a set. The elements are enclosed in curly braces { }.
There are two ways of writing a set: roster notation or listing method and set-builder notation
a) In roster notation, the elements are listed one by one and are separated by a
comma.
A= {Maria, Ana, Joan, Angel, Erica}
B = {Maria, Ana, Joan, Abe}
b) In set-builder notation, a descriptor is used instead of listing all the elements of the
set.
A = {x/x is a girl in 7-Sunflower}
B = {x/x is a student in 7-Suflower whose age is 13}
The symbol x/x is read as “x such that x is a _____”

NULL SET AND CARDINALITY OF A SET

A null set, also called empty set, is a set with no elements. The symbols { } or ∅ refer to
null set or empty set.
Cardinality of set is the number of elements contained in a set. The cardinality of a set
A is written as n(A).
For example, given: M = {b, c, d}.M contains 3 elements.
The cardinality of M is 3. In symbol, n(M)=3.

Finite sets are the sets having a countable number of members.

Examples of a finite set: P={0, 3, 6, 9, …, 99} for n(P) = 100
M = {x/x is the month of the year} for n (M) = 12
Infinite sets are the sets in which the number of elements cannot be counted or
determined (never ending)

. Examples: W= {0, 1, 2, 3, 4, …} for n(W) = cannot be determined

 L = {x/x is a point on a line} for n(L) = cannot be determined

The universal set, U, is the set that contains all elements under consideration.
If all the elements of set A are also elements of set B, then A is a subset of B. This means that
subsets can be created from any defined universal set. The set of natural numbers itself is a
subset of the set of real numbers, which could be another example of a universal set.
Equal sets have the same element, even though they could be out of order. Thus, it has equal
cardinality.
Equivalent sets have different element but have the same amount of element.