Lesson 6 of 11
Which chart answers
Show on a big screenFive charts hang on the classroom wall. Given a question, which one answers it?
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The rule
Pick the chart built for the kind of answer the question wants. So first decide what kind of answer that is.
- A count: how many, or which group is bigger.
- A share: what part of its own whole.
- A change along an ordered scale, like days.
An ordered scale has a fixed order, like days 1, 2, 3.
A chart answers only if it shows that kind of answer.
| Chart | What it carries |
|---|---|
| Bar graph | counts, one bar per group |
| Line graph | counts along an ordered scale |
| Pie chart | shares of one whole |
| Stacked bar | counts of the pieces and the whole |
| 100% stacked bar | shares of each of several wholes |
Decide the kind of answer. Then pick the chart that carries it.
A pie has one whole. For shares of two seasons, use a 100% stacked bar.
A line graph joins its points with lines. The lines mean something only along a real order, like days.
Some questions no chart answers. "Why did the paddy double?" asks for a reason.
Try the lab to finish this lesson.