Using a Spreadsheet to Organize Data and Make a Graph

Rainfall Data - Comparing 1999 to 2000

1. Use AppleWorks to make a bar graph to show the monthly rainfall for Washington, D.C.
2. After opening AppleWorks, select Word Processing.
3. Make the tools available. (Window/Show tools.)
4. Select the Spreadsheet tool and click and drag to make a spreadsheet with 11 rows and 3 columns.

    

   Month	Monthly Rainfall for 2000 (inches)	Monthly Rainfall for 1999 (inches)
   Jan	3.66	5.42
   Feb	2.06	2.51
   Mar	3.98	3.87
   Apr	5.13	2.09
   May	3.08	1.28
   Jun	4.93	2.26
   Jul	5.51	1.01
   Aug	3.77	5.02
   Sep	4.91	10.27
   Oct	.02	2.16

5. Type in the column headings
6. Type in the months of the year
7. Now type in the data.
8. To make the graph:
   • Highlight all of your data including the column headings.
   • Click on Options in the menu bar and drag to Make chart.
   • Select bar graph and click OK.

Rainfall data for this activity was obtained from the National Weather Service Sterling Climate Page.