Interpret bar graphs to answer multi-step questions about a context.
Reading bar graphs (multi-step)
In a bar graph each bar represents a number.
The following bar graph shows the number of seconds that different rides last at the fair. We can tell how long each ride lasts by matching the bar for that ride to the number it lines up with on the left.
The spinning cups are the shortest ride. They last only
A bar graph shows the horizontal axis labeled Ride and the vertical axis labeled Time in seconds. The horizontal axis is labeled, from left to right: Swinging ship, Bumper cars, Roller coaster, Spinning cups, and Ferris wheel. The vertical axis is labeled from the bottom of the axis to the top of the axis as follows: 0, 30, 60, 90, 120, 150, 180, 210, 240, and 270. The bar line for each ride shows the following: Swinging ship bar line extends to 150, Bumper cars bar line extends to 180, Roller coaster bar line extends to 210, Spinning cups bar line extends to 120, and Ferris wheel bar line extends to 240.
Sometimes to answer questions about bar graphs we will need to look at several of the bars. Let's break this next question into smaller steps.
Which rides last longer than the spinning cups but not as long as the roller coaster?
Here are the steps.
Problem 1, Part A
How many seconds does the spinning cups ride last?
seconds
Problem 1, Part B
How many seconds does the roller coaster ride last?
seconds
Now we know we are looking for rides that last between
Problem 1, Part C
Which rides last longer than the spinning cups but not as long as the roller coaster?
Understanding bar graphs
The following bar graph shows the prizes given away one day at the Ring Toss game at the fair.
A bar graph shows the horizontal axis labeled Prize and the vertical axis labeled Number. The horizontal axis is labeled, from left to right: Rubber duck, Beach ball, Stuffed frog, and Stuffed pig. The vertical axis is labeled from the bottom of the axis to the top of the axis as follows: 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, and 45. The bar line for each prize shows the following: Rubber duck bar line extends to 40, Beach ball bar line extends to 25, Stuffed frog bar line extends to 15, and Stuffed pig bar line extends to 5.
The number of rubber ducks that were given away is equal to which other two categories combined?
This is another question that we can break into smaller steps.
Problem 2, Part A
How many rubber ducks were given away?
rubber ducks
Problem 2, Part B
Fill in the blanks.
There were
beach balls,
stuffed frogs, and
stuffed pigs given away.
Now we are ready to answer the original question:
Problem 2, Part C
The number of rubber ducks that were given away is equal to which other two categories combined?
Sometimes we will need to look at all the bars to answer a question.
Practice Problem 3
prizes
Combining bar graphs with other information
We can also combine the information from a bar graph with other information to answer a question.
The following graph shows the number of different foods that were sold one afternoon at the fair's Snack Shack.
A bar graph shows the horizontal axis labeled Food and the vertical axis labeled Number Sold. The horizontal axis is labeled, from left to right: Corn dog, Funnel cake, Popcorn, Chili fries, and Cotton candy. The vertical axis is labeled from the bottom of the axis to the top of the axis as follows: 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100, and 110. The bar line for each food shows the following: Corn dog bar line extends to 80, Funnel cake bar line extends to 100, Popcorn bar line extends to 50, Chili fries bar line extends to 70, and Cotton candy bar line extends to 30.
The cost of funnel cake is
In this question we need to combine information from the bar graph about the number of foods sold with the information about the cost of those foods.
How much more was spent on funnel cakes than on chili fries?
Let's break this down into several steps.
Problem 4, Part A
Fill in the blanks.
The Snack Shack sold
funnel cakes and
chili fries.
To figure out how much was spent on each food we need to multiply the number of the food that was sold by the cost for that food.
Problem 4, Part B
Now we have the information we need to answer the original question:
Problem 4, Part C
How much more was spent on funnel cakes than on chili fries?
Let's try another question about this graph. We will still need to take multiple steps, but this time the steps haven't been broken down for us.
Practice Problem 5
The cost of a corn dog is
What was the total amount spent on corn dogs and cotton candy?
Comparing two bar graphs
Hui and Theo went to the fair. They each kept track of how much time they spent waiting in line for three different rides. When they got home they each made their own bar graph to show their waiting times.
A bar graph shows the horizontal axis labeled Hui's Rides and the vertical axis labeled Waiting Time in minutes. The horizontal axis is labeled, from left to right: Tilt-A-Whirl, Spinning swings, and Giant slide. The vertical axis is labeled from the bottom of the axis to the top of the axis as follows: 0, 3, 6, 9, 12, 15, 18, and 21. The bar line for each Hui’s Ride shows the following: Tilt-A-Whirl bar line extends to 12, Spinning swings bar line extends to 3, and Giant slide bar line extends to 6.
A bar graph shows the horizontal axis labeled Theo’s Rides and the vertical axis labeled Waiting Time in minutes. The horizontal axis is labeled, from left to right: Haunted house, Octopus, and Merry-go-round. The vertical axis is labeled from the bottom of the axis to the top of the axis as follows: 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12. The bar line for each Theo’s Ride shows the following: Haunted house bar line extends to 6, Octopus bar line extends to 10, and Merry-go-round bar line extends to 2.
Practice Problem 6A
What is the longest time either Hui or Theo spent waiting for a ride?
minutes
Practice Problem 6B
What is the shortest time either Hui or Theo spent waiting for a ride?
minutes
Practice Problem 6C
Which two rides had the same waiting time?
Log in 30shaa03 4 years agoPosted 4 years ago. Direct link to 30shaa03's post “this was hard though and ...” this was hard though and kind of easy • (10 votes) 20160045 4 years agoPosted 4 years ago. Direct link to 20160045's post “Witch one is more the mer...” Witch one is more the merry-go round or the haunted house. • (6 votes) kavya.saxena.kv a year agoPosted a year ago. Direct link to kavya.saxena.kv's post “the haunted house” the haunted house (5 votes) domenic.lemus a year agoPosted a year ago. Direct link to domenic.lemus's post “is math like reading” is math like reading • (6 votes) Persive a year agoPosted a year ago. Direct link to Persive's post “Sort of but more fun” Sort of but more fun (1 vote) Zume26 a year agoPosted a year ago. Direct link to Zume26's post “if im being honest, this ...” if im being honest, this is really easy for me that is. • (5 votes) kavya.saxena.kv a year agoPosted a year ago. Direct link to kavya.saxena.kv's post “same here” same here (1 vote) Sakshum :) a year agoPosted a year ago. Direct link to Sakshum :)'s post “it said hui or theo” it said hui or theo • (6 votes) sxvalencia0004 2 years agoPosted 2 years ago. Direct link to sxvalencia0004's post “why is this kinda easy lo...” why is this kinda easy lol • (5 votes) marp a year agoPosted a year ago. Direct link to marp's post “because it is.” because it is. (3 votes) Zume26 a year agoPosted a year ago. Direct link to Zume26's post “i think that this multi-s...” i think that this multi-step reading bar graphs thing is too long. it is easy. just too long. • (5 votes) kkhan1991 2 years agoPosted 2 years ago. Direct link to kkhan1991's post “i had to use a paper.neve...” i had to use a paper.never again. • (5 votes) yashvi praveen a year agoPosted a year ago. Direct link to yashvi praveen's post “I never use a paper for m...” I never use a paper for math (0 votes) JR fighter pilot 2 years agoPosted 2 years ago. Direct link to JR fighter pilot's post “why was that so hard” why was that so hard • (4 votes) vani.saxena.vk a year agoPosted a year ago. Direct link to vani.saxena.vk's post “why don`t you get on with...” why don`t you get on with your work • (4 votes)Want to join the conversation?
