Charts and Line Graphs
In Year 4, children move on from simply reading data to working with it. They interpret and present information shown in bar charts, pictograms, tables and time graphs, the kind that track how something changes through a day or a week. As well as reading off single values, they answer questions by finding totals, working out the difference between two amounts and comparing which is larger or smaller.
Practise Charts and Line Graphs
Have a guess, even if you're not sure. Get one wrong and we'll show you why, so every miss is a chance to learn.
Timed practice
The same practice, just with a gentle clock. Pick a length and see how many you can answer.
Good to know
Reading charts
The same numbers shown three ways: a table, a bar chart and a pictogram. Find a value in one, then spot it in the others.
Pictogram
Each picture = 2
- Apple
- Banana
- Melon
- Orange
Table
| Fruit | How many |
|---|---|
| Apple | 8 |
| Banana | 6 |
| Melon | 4 |
| Orange | 10 |
| All together | 28 |
Reading a line graph
A line graph shows how something changes over time. Find the time along the bottom, go up to the line, then read across to the side.
For grown-ups
Charts are where number skills meet real situations like temperatures, scores and amounts, so a child has to read carefully before calculating: check the scale, read the labels, and notice that one pictogram picture might stand for two or more. The thinking behind a "how many more" question, taking the smaller value from the larger rather than adding them, is the same comparison reasoning that later underpins more complex graphs and data work in secondary maths. Time graphs add something new: continuous data, where the line between points has meaning, building towards the line graphs and conversion graphs of Years 5 and 6.
What is in this topic
- Read line graphs that show how something changes over time
- Make sense of discrete and continuous data presented in different ways
- Pull values out of bar charts, pictograms and tables
- Work out the total of two or more amounts shown on a chart
- Find the difference between values on a graph or table
- Compare amounts to see which is larger or smaller
How to help at home
A chart is just a picture of numbers, so the skill is reading it carefully rather than calculating fast. A few minutes spent talking through a real chart, like one on a cereal box or a sports table, builds the habit of checking the scale and the labels before answering.
- Read the scale before the bars. On the lunchbox chart, point out that each pictogram picture stands for 2, so the 5 pictures next to Orange mean 10, not 5, and the 2 pictures next to Melon mean 4.
- Turn one chart into questions together. Using the fruit data, ask 'how many more oranges than melons?' (Orange 10 take away Melon 4 is 6) and 'how many pieces of fruit altogether?' (8 add 6 add 4 add 10 is 28).
- For a time graph, trace it with a finger. Pick a time along the bottom, run up to the line, then across to the value, so reading 'how warm was it at 2pm' becomes following two straight lines rather than guessing.
- Always ask which is bigger or smaller first. Comparing Apple 8 and Banana 6 by saying 'Apple is the taller bar, so Apple has more, and 8 take away 6 is 2 more' keeps the comparison before the sum.
Where children get stuck
The most common slip is reading a pictogram as if each picture means one. A child counts 5 pictures by Orange and writes 5, missing that each picture stands for 2 and the real answer is 10. Fix it by covering the key with a finger first and asking 'what is one picture worth?' before counting anything, then count in twos out loud: 2, 4, 6, 8, 10.
The other wobble is reaching for 'add' on a 'how many more' question. Asked how many more oranges than melons, a child adds 10 and 4 to get 14 instead of finding the difference. A quick 'are we putting them together, or comparing two amounts?' settles it: comparing means take the smaller from the bigger, so Orange 10 take away Melon 4 is 6 more.