Practice Database Design

Introduction

To practice modeling databases, you'll be tasked with drawing ERDs for a handful of hypothetical applications. Think about what models you would need and what tables you'd create, including the associated attributes and how they would related to other tables.

Over the next 55 minutes, break into groups of three and work together to draw out diagrams for one of the apps below. You'll be drawing on the wall, so snap photos of the drawings when you've finished for safe keeping.

In the last 20 minutes of class, we'll ask for volunteers (or pick some participants) to walk us through your thinking & explain your decisions.

Remember to consider all different angles in each of these examples. What jobs relationships exist? What people are there? What objects and intangible ideas are necessary? How would you organize it?

Exercise

Requirements

• Pick one of the following in your group, design the table relationships, and draw them:

  • an app to run a grocery store
  • an app to run an airline
  • an app to run a school
  • an app to run a team of developers

Deliverable

An ERD diagram, using crow's foot notation, of whatever app you choose. For example:

Note: this example has "Items" as placeholders for the attributes.

Additional Resources

• crows foot notation cheat sheet
• Extra relevant resource for students