Making Sense of

Graphs
Lesson 8
 In this lesson, we are going to look at a
different kind of information text. We are
going to focus on how information can be
communicated visually. You are going to
learn some strategies for making sense of
information in a graph.
 Graphs and charts organize information
in different ways from written information
texts. That is why we call them non-linear
texts. They have their own structures and
special features for representing data and
other kinds of information.
LANGUAGE
PRACTICE
bar graph
key
axis
precipitation
temperature
Average
C
mm
bar graph (a bar graph or chart
displays information (data) by using
rectangular bars of different heights.)
key (an explanatory list of symbols
used in a map, graph or table)
axis (the line along the bottom or
side of a graph that is used to
measure data)
precipitation (rain, hail, sleet or snow
that falls from clouds to the ground)
temperature (the degree of heat or
cold of an object or an environment)
35
average (the result that you get
when you add two or more numbers
together and divide the total by the
number of numbers you added
together)
 C (degrees Celsius – abbreviation)
mm (millimeters – abbreviation)
The horizontal axis shows the
months of the year. On the left,
the vertical axis shows the
temperature in degrees Celsius.
On the right, the vertical axis
shows the rainfall measured in
millimeters. The key tells us that
the bars on the graph means
rainfall and the line with dots
shows the temperature.
• Read the title which gives the gist of what
the graph is about.
• Analyze the data by examining the
information and the labels thoroughly.
• Examine the pictures, symbols, shapes or
any image that tell information.
• Study the relationship of the information
and images deeply.
• Summarize the text’s main message.

Here are some tips on getting

information from a graph.