Resources/Data practice: bar graphs and line plots
Grades 2-4•Printable worksheet + answer key•CC0 license

Data practice: bar graphs and line plots

A printable lesson for reading and interpreting data displays.

Students practice reading bar graphs, line plots, and answering data questions.

Print-ready worksheet with answer key and quick teaching tips.

Grades 2-40 problems10 minAnswer key included
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Ready-to-teach

Clear steps, examples, and practice in one printable page.

Misconception-proof

Highlights common mistakes and how to fix them quickly.

Open license

CC0: free to copy, adapt, and share without attribution.

Quick overview

This free data and graphs worksheet for grades 2-4 builds confidence reading bar graphs and line plots.

Lesson plan snapshot

15-20 min
  • Warm-up (3 min): read a simple bar graph together.
  • Model (5 min): solve the worked example together.
  • Guided practice (5 min): complete problems 1-3 as a group.
  • Independent practice (7 min): finish the remaining problems.

Materials: graph paper, pencil

Learning targets

  • Read values from bar graphs.
  • Interpret line plots and counts.
  • Answer comparison questions about data.

Step-by-step approach

  1. 1Read the title and labels first.
  2. 2Find the category, then read the value.
  3. 3Compare values by subtraction or counting differences.
  4. 4Use units in the answer.

Common mistakes

Mistake

Ignoring the axis labels.

Try instead

Always read labels to know what the numbers mean.

Mistake

Counting tick marks instead of values.

Try instead

Read the value each tick mark represents.

Mistake

Mixing up categories.

Try instead

Point to the category name before reading the value.

Worked example

Guided
A bar graph shows: Apples = 6, Bananas = 4, Oranges = 5. Which fruit has the most?
  1. Compare the values: 6, 4, 5.
  2. The largest value is 6 for Apples.
Answer: Apples

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Practice problems

10 problems • 15 min

Printable worksheet
  1. 1
    A chart shows 15 votes for option A and 7 votes for option B. How many more votes did A get?
  2. 2
    A class survey shows: apples 12, bananas 8, grapes 22. Which is the most?
  3. 3
    A chart shows 22 votes for option A and 8 votes for option B. How many more votes did A get?
  4. 4
    A chart shows 17 votes for option A and 6 votes for option B. How many more votes did A get?
  5. 5
    A chart shows 18 votes for option A and 6 votes for option B. How many more votes did A get?
  6. 6
    A tally chart shows books read: Monday 9, Tuesday 10, Wednesday 15. How many books in total?
  7. 7
    A class survey shows: apples 15, bananas 9, grapes 18. Which is the most?
  8. 8
    A chart shows 22 votes for option A and 11 votes for option B. How many more votes did A get?
  9. 9
    A tally chart shows books read: Monday 6, Tuesday 8, Wednesday 8. How many books in total?
  10. 10
    A chart shows 18 votes for option A and 5 votes for option B. How many more votes did A get?

Answer key

10 answers
  1. 11) 8
  2. 22) grapes
  3. 33) 14
  4. 44) 11
  5. 55) 12
  6. 66) 34
  7. 77) grapes
  8. 88) 11
  9. 99) 22
  10. 1010) 13

Teacher tips

  • TUse real class data to build graphs together.
  • THave students label axes before answering questions.
  • TAsk “How do you know?” after each response.

Parent tips

  • PMake simple charts for snacks or chores at home.
  • PAsk your child to compare “most” and “least.”
  • PPractice counting Xs on a line plot.

Open license

You are free to copy, adapt, and share these materials. No attribution required. Released under Creative Commons CC0 1.0 (public domain).