Bar Graphs
Data that is counted and has no in-between value is called Pet Number of Children
discrete data. Discrete data is usually collected in a frequency Cat 12
table and then presented as a bar chart. Dog 14
Fish 7
A bar chart has a horizontal axis and a vertical axis. Rabbit 5
Other 8
• A bar chart must always have a title
A Bar Graph to Show
explaining what it shows. How Many Pets Y6 Have
16
• Bars must be carefully drawn to show the
data. 14
• There must be a gap between each bar. 12
Number of Children
• Each bar must be the same width. 10
A number line is marked on the vertical axis. 6
The scale of this number line is chosen based on
4
the data range.
The data categories are organised on the 2
horizontal axis. 0
Cat Dog Fish Rabbit Other
Each axis must have a label explaining what it
Type of Pet
shows.
Comparative Bar Graphs
Discrete data in each category can also be represented in subcategories:
We can draw a grouped bar chart to show this
Number of Number of
Pet
Boys Girls
data. In this bar chart, each category has more
than one bar. A key is used to identify the
Cat 7 5
subcategories of the data.
Dog 6 8
Fish 3 4 A Bar Graph to Show How Many Pets Y6 Have
Rabbit 1 4 Number of Boys Number of Girls
10
Other 2 6 9
Number of Children 8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Cat Dog Fish Rabbit Other
Type of Pet
Line Graphs
Line graphs are used to show changes to a A Line Graph to Show the Temperature of the Classroom
measurement over time. They show
40
continuous data.
38
The data being measured is shown on the
vertical axis.
The time the data is being measured over 36
is shown on the horizontal axis.
Tempera ture °c
34
Data is plotted on to a line graph in the 32
same way as a coordinate grid. These data
plots are then joined with straight lines.
30
We can use the line of the graph to describe 28
general trends in the change of the
measurement over time, or to find precise 26
measurements at a given time. 1 3
Time
5 7
Pie Graphs
Pie charts show discrete data as proportional sectors of a circle.
Every sector of a pie chart is a proportion of the whole. You can explain what each sector
represents using an angle, fraction or percentage.
Being able to convert between fractions, percentages and angles is a key skill for answering
questions about data presented in a pie chart.
We can use fraction, percentage and angle
equivalents to interpret the data in a pie
chart.
If the whole pie chart represents 120, the
value of the orange sector is 60.
Bar Graph & Pie Graph
Pie graphs do not show exact value, but percentage.
They are usually useful when comparing a large sample with
a small sample.
It is hard to present a large sample and a small sample in a
bar graph. So, pie graph is the best option to present that
data.
Question & Answer
Which graph is suitable to present this data?
The temperature in New York city
Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5 Day 6
43oF 53oF 57oF 59oF 62oF 63oF
Answer : Line Graph
Question & Answer
Which graph is suitable to present this data?
The number of apples eaten
Jan Feb March April May June
8 13 20 15 9 11
Answer : Bar/Line Graph
Question & Answer
Which graph is suitable to present this data?
Favourite Colour
Red Green Black Blue White
10% 45% 3% 14% 16%
Answer : Pie Graph
Question & Answer
Which graph is suitable to present this data?
Favourite Sport
Soccer Swimming Basketball Tennis Gymnastic
10 15 38 20 15
Answer : Bar/Line Graph