Pictograms - KS3 Maths - BBC Bitesize

Key points

An image of a pictogram. The pictogram has four rows. Each row is labelled with the name of a soft drink, orange, apple, blackcurrant and other. A number of bottles are drawn on each row to represent the frequencies. The correct number of bottles have been drawn on each row to represent the frequencies. On the orange row; four. On the apple row; five. On the blackcurrant row; one and a half. On the other row; three and a half. Drawn right: a pencil completing the drawing of the final half bottle. — Image caption,
A pictogram uses pictures, or icons, to represent the frequency of each category.

A pictogram is a type of chart used to represent a or set of data.
A pictogram uses pictures, or icons, to represent the of each category. The total frequency is dependent on the number of icons used.
In a pictogram the icons used are the same size, equally spaced and are aligned for each category. This makes it easy to spot the .
A is included to indicate what value each icon represents. Fractions of the icon, usually a half or a quarter, might be used to indicate some values.
A pictogram can be used to make comparisons between the categories in a set of data.

Creating a pictogram

To produce a pictogram, data is required. The data often comes in the form of a table.
To create a pictogram:

Look for the largest frequency in your table.
Decide on an appropriate icon and what value it will represent. Ones, twos or fours work best.
Draw a table with two columns, one for the category and one for the icons.
Label the categories in the table.
Draw the correct number of images for each frequency.
Check you have included a key and give your pictogram a title.

Examples

Skip image gallery

Image caption,
Thirty students were asked which their favourite soft drink was. The table shows the results. Create a pictogram to represent the data in the table.
Image caption,
First identify the largest frequency, which is 10
Image caption,
Since the subject of this graph is soft drinks, an image of a bottle would be an appropriate icon. In this example a bottle represents two students. Half a bottle would represent one student.
Image caption,
The table needs two columns, one for the category and one for the icons. The column for the icons will need to be wider.
Image caption,
Since one bottle represents two students, each frequency will need to be divided by two to work out the number of icons needed. Orange = 8 ÷ 2 = 4 icons. Apple = 10 ÷ 2 = 5 icons. Blackcurrant = 3 ÷ 2 = 1½ icons. Other = 7 ÷ 2 = 3½ icons. Each icon is drawn the same size, and they are spaced out equally.
Image caption,
The final pictogram should include a title and a key.
Image caption,
It is also possible to read data and make comparisons using a pictogram. This pictogram shows the number of pizzas eaten by five friends in the past month. One icon represents four pizzas. Each quarter of a slice represents one pizza.
Image caption,
The mode is represented by the highest frequency. Vijay is the mode as he consumed 17 pizzas in the month.
Image caption,
By finding the difference between the two frequencies a comparison can be made. Vijay ate 17 pizzas. Chris ate six pizzas. 17 – 6 = 11. Vijay ate 11 more pizzas than Chris.
Image caption,
The total number of pizzas eaten by the five friends can be calculated by adding each frequency together. Total pizzas = 12 + 17 + 6 + 7 + 8 = 50. The friends consumed a total of 50 pizzas during the month.