264 Part 4: The State of the World
So what does the bar graph for the four classes at County High School look like? You draw a bar
for each class, making sure that the bars are all the same width, and bringing each up to a point
on the scale that corresponds to the enrollment. You might want to label the bars with the actual
values they represent, especially if the scale is hard to read.
Class Sizes at County High School
How to Read It
When you begin to read a bar graph, look first at the words around the graph. Is there a title to
tell you what the graph is about? Are the scales labeled to tell you what they show and in what
units they’re measured? Then look at the actual bars. How high is each bar? You may need to
estimate the quantities, if exact values are not given. Be sure to read scales carefully.
y
600
550
500
450
400
350
300
0
x
Freshman
583
Sophomore
529
Junior
492
Senior
451
76
75
74
73
72
71
70
69
68
67
66
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