Create bar graphs

Detailed Explanation: Create bar graphs

A bar graph shows how many items are in each category. Each category has its own bar.

When you make a bar graph:

1. Write a clear title.
2. Put the categories along the bottom or on the side.
3. Label the number axis.
4. Use a consistent whole-number scale, such as $1$ number per line.
5. Draw equal-width bars. Leave a gap between bars so the categories are separate.
6. Make each bar’s height or length match its category’s number.

Example

A class votes for its favorite fruit.

Step 1: Write the title

Write:

Favorite Fruits

This tells what the graph shows.

Step 2: Label the axes

Put the fruit names on one axis:

• Apples
• Bananas
• Oranges
• Grapes

Label the other axis Number of Students.

Step 3: Choose a scale

The largest number is $5$, so use a scale from $0$ to $5$:

Each step represents $1$ student.

Step 4: Draw the bars

• Draw the Apples bar up to $4$.
• Draw the Bananas bar up to $2$.
• Draw the Oranges bar up to $5$.
• Draw the Grapes bar up to $3$.

The finished graph should look like this:

Favorite Fruits

Number of Students
5 |             █
4 |   █         █
3 |   █         █       █
2 |   █   █     █       █
1 |   █   █     █       █
0 +---------------------------
      Apples  Bananas  Oranges  Grapes

In a neatly drawn graph, all bars should have the same width, and there should be gaps between them. The Oranges bar is tallest because $5$ students chose oranges. The Bananas bar is shortest because only $2$ students chose bananas.