Skill: Create pictographs

A pictograph uses pictures or symbols to show data. Each symbol must be the same size, and a key tells what each symbol represents.

Example

A class records its favorite fruit:

Fruit	Number of students
Apples	6
Bananas	10
Oranges	4

Create a pictograph where 1 symbol represents 2 students.

Step 1: Write the title

The title tells what the pictograph shows:

Favorite Fruits

Step 2: Write the key

The key explains the value of one symbol:

Key: 🍎 = 2 students

The symbol is just a picture used to represent a number. You could use any symbol, such as ★.

Step 3: Find how many symbols each category needs

Divide each number by the value of one symbol, which is $2$.

• Apples: $6 \div 2 = 3$ symbols
• Bananas: $10 \div 2 = 5$ symbols
• Oranges: $4 \div 2 = 2$ symbols

Step 4: Draw the pictograph

Favorite Fruits

Fruit	Students
Apples	🍎 🍎 🍎
Bananas	🍎 🍎 🍎 🍎 🍎
Oranges	🍎 🍎

Key: 🍎 = 2 students

Step 5: Check your pictograph

Multiply the number of symbols in each row by $2$:

• Apples: $3 \times 2 = 6$
• Bananas: $5 \times 2 = 10$
• Oranges: $2 \times 2 = 4$

The pictograph matches the data table, so it is correct.