Describing charts

To compare information presented in a table, graph or chart, we will need

to:
1. Spend at least 5 minutes planning your answers.
2. Read the instructions carefully.
3. Analyze the illustration & interpret the data accurately
4. Organize the information:
 point out overall trends rather than details
 include only relevant information
 Draw a conclusion
5. Use appropriate vocabulary
(Do not spend more than 30 minutes completing the task)

TASK 0
Look at the pie chart

56% Car Colour

Blue
Red
White
3%
Other

28% 13%

Figure 1

When describing charts, the language of comparison is used.

 Describing just one part of the chart:
1
 The most popular car colour is white
second most common colour is red
 Comparing two parts of the pie chart
Red is substantially more common blue
considerably than
a lot less popular
far
much
somewhat
significantly
slightly
fractionally
a little/ a bit
 Or
White is about twice as common as blue
three times popular

Look at Figure 1 and study these examples.

- White, which is 56%, is considerably more common than blue, which makes up 13%.
- Red, which constitutes 28%, is about twice as popular as blue, which is 13%.
- The other colours, which constitute 3%, are considerably less popular than blue (13%).
There are two ways of incorporating data: by using
- brackets ( )
- a relative clause (which + appropriate verb: is, makes up, constitutes, accounts for).

Writing introductory sentences

Look at the examples.
- The graph in Figure 16 shows the total grain harvest area in millions of hectares
between 1950 and 1996.
- The graph in Figure 16 shows the total grain harvest area in millions of hectares over a
36-year period.
Type of chart Appropriate verb Description
The illustration shows the number of …
graph illustrates the proportion of …
pie chart presents information on …
bar chart data on …
table
Writing conclusions
To signal your conclusion you can use the terms in the box.

Expression What to write

In summary, … Express the main point of the illustration again in
To sum up, … your own words.
In conclusion, … Say something new that does not extend too far
To conclude, … beyond what the illustration shows. You can
mention future implications, or draw a conclusion.
Look at the example
In summary, we can see that the area devoted to grain production was affected by both
government policy and market forces.
2
 PRACTICE

TASK 1

Give short information illustrated by the pie charts below

Changes in the Average US Diet, 1990 and 2005.

Task 2:
The graph shows the number of meals eaten in fast food restaurants and sit-down restaurants
by the average family in England in different years.
Summarise the information by selecting and reporting the main features, and make
comparisons where relevant. (Write 150 – 170 words.)

3
Task 3:

Give short information illustrated by the bar chart below

The number of houses built per decade in the towns of Farkletown and Newtown over the last century