Thinkabara

📊 Presentations: PowerPoint & Google Slides · Lesson 5 of 7

Tables, charts and diagrams

Google Classroom

Show numbers so people understand them at once.

Which one to use?

TableExact values to compare side by side
Bar or column chartComparing amounts: which is biggest
Pie chartParts of a whole (up to about 5 slices)
Line chartChange over time
Diagram (SmartArt)Steps, cycles or a hierarchy

Inserting a chart

PowerPoint: Insert > Chart, choose a type, and type the numbers in the small Excel sheet that opens. Google Slides: Insert > Chart, choose a type, then “Open source” to edit the numbers in Google Sheets.

Making it readable

  1. Give the chart a title that says what it shows: “Lions sleep the most”
  2. Delete what you don’t need: gridlines, a legend with one series
  3. Make the labels big
  4. Highlight the important bar in a different color

Diagrams

PowerPoint: Insert > SmartArt turns a list into a cycle, process or hierarchy. Google Slides: Insert > Diagram. Great for a life cycle or the steps of an experiment.

Tip

💡 One chart, one message. If you need to explain the chart for two minutes, it is too complicated.

✏️ Practice: your turn

  1. Add a slide with a column chart: how many hours a day 4 animals sleep
  2. Give the chart a title that states the message
  3. Color the most important column differently
  4. Add a diagram of an animal’s life cycle

🧠 Quick quiz

Answer all 4 questions correctly to mark this lesson as done.

1. Which chart shows change over time?
2. Which chart shows parts of a whole?
3. A good chart title…
4. What is a diagram (SmartArt) good for?

0 of 4 correct

All lessons in Presentations: PowerPoint & Google Slides

  1. 🖥️ 1. Your first slideA new presentation, a title slide, more slides and saving
  2. 🎨 2. Design that looks goodThemes, colors, fonts and very little text
  3. 🖼️ 3. Pictures, icons and videoInsert a picture, crop it, add icons and credit the source
  4. ✨ 4. Animations and transitionsTransitions between slides, bullets one by one, and moderation
  5. 📈 5. Tables, charts and diagramsShow numbers so people understand them at once
  6. 🎤 6. Presenting to the classSlide Show mode, speaker notes, practice and nerves
  7. 🏁 7. Final project: a presentation from A to ZBuild a complete 6-slide presentation with a checklist