Embedded Files
There are many different kinds of charts that are used to visualize data. In this tutorial, you will learn to make scatter, line, and bar charts, but there are many other types of visualizations that people use to interpret data in different ways. Review the Data Visualization 101 Guide and familiarize yourself with the different chart types, paying particular attention to the scatter, line, and bar charts.
Do the following:
➤ Create a copy of the "MovieRating_AvgRatingByAgeGender.csv" survey data spreadsheet on your Google Drive.
Making a Scatter Chart
Making a Scatter Chart
The first type of chart you're going to build is a scatter chart. Scatter charts are useful for finding relationships between two types of data. In this exercise, you will build a scatter chart that shows the relationship between movie reviewer age and average movie rating.
Select Data For Scatter Chart
Select Data For Scatter Chart
Do the following:
➤ Follow the example in the video provided.
➤ Using your own copy of the "MovieRating_AvgRatingByAgeGender" data spreadsheet, select the "age" and "avg rating" columns, as show below.
Hint: To select an entire column, click the top cell (ex. A1), then hold down the "SHIFT" key and select the last cell from the last column you want (ex. B62).
Insert Scatter Chart
Insert Scatter Chart
Google gives suggestions of what kind of chart you can make from your data, but for this exercise you're going to ignore those suggestions and make the chart yourself.
Do the following:
➤ Go to the Chart Editor by clicking Insert >> Chart.
➤ Try a few chart types. Notice the preview changing.
➤ Select "Scatter Chart."
➤ Experiment with the check boxes on the right, and notice how the chart preview changes.
➤ Check "Use row 1 as headers." This makes sure your chart uses the column names in the first row of your spreadsheet.
➤ Check "Use column A as labels." This tells the chart that column A is your horizontal or "x" axis.
Do a Visual Check of your Scatter Chart
Do a Visual Check of your Scatter Chart
At this point, your chart should look something like the example provided.
Do the following:
➤ Take a moment to look at your visualization and understand what the chart is conveying.
Making A Line Chart
Making A Line Chart
You can use many different kinds of charts to look at the same data. You'll now investigate different columns of your data with a line chart. Line charts are helpful for showing the progression of values over time. In this case you will be showing how the average movie rating changes with the reviewer's age.
Select Data For Line Chart
Select Data For Line Chart
Do the following:
➤ Follow the example in the video provided.
➤ Select the "age," "avg rating women," and "avg rating men" columns.
To multi-select cells in non-adjacent columns, you need to use various key combinations:
First select the cells from the first column (i.e., A1 through A62) using the SHIFT+click combination.
Then, hold down COMMAND (if using a Mac) or CONTROL (if using Windows) and click to select the first cell of the next column (i.e., D1).
Finally, hold COMMAND/CONTROL and SHIFT simultaneously, then click to select the last cell in the new column (i.e., D62).
Repeat steps 2-3 for any additional columns you want to select (i.e., F1 through F62).
Insert Line Chart
Insert Line Chart
Do the following:
➤ Select Insert >> Chart from the main toolbar to open the Chart Editor.
➤ Set the chart type to "Line chart."
➤ Check the boxes for "Use row 1 as headers" and "Use column A as labels."
Do a Visual Check of your Line Chart
Do a Visual Check of your Line Chart
At this point, your chart should look something like the example provided.
Do the following:
➤ Take a moment to look at your visualization and notice any interesting patterns or trends.
Making A Bar Chart
Making A Bar Chart
In this exercise, you will use some different columns in the spreadsheet to create a bar chart. Bar charts are useful for viewing data grouped by different categories.
Select Data For Bar Chart
Select Data For Bar Chart
Do the following:
➤ Follow the example in the video provided.
➤ Select the "age," "number of women," and "number of men" columns
Select the first column of data using the mouse
Hold down the "Control" key, (or "Command" on a Mac) and select the additional columns of data
To select non-adjacent columns, use the key combinations as described above.
Insert Bar Chart
Insert Bar Chart
Do the following:
➤ Select Insert >> Chart from the main toolbar to open the Chart Editor.
➤ Set the chart type to "Column chart."
➤ Check the boxes for "Use row 1 as headers" and "Use column A as labels."
Do a Visual Check of your Bar Chart
Do a Visual Check of your Bar Chart
At this point, your chart should look something like the example provided.
Do the following:
➤ Take a moment to look at your visualization and notice any data points that seem interesting or stand out to you.
Now that you've learned the basics of creating charts, you can further customize the appearance of your chart, which will make your visualization easier to read and understand.
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse