Ages 10+ · Money · Investing and growing
Reading a price chart
Price by week 0 5 10 15 10 1 12 2 11 3 14 4 13 5 8 6 11 7 15 8 pretend coins Eight weeks of the Lemon Co. price of one slice, in pretend coins. The big idea A price chart is a line of prices over time, and it shows the past only.
How it works A price chart has two lines: across is time (here eight weeks) and up is the price. A dot shows one moment.
Joining the dots with a line shows how the price moved. A climbing line is a rising price, and a falling line is a falling price.
A steeper line means a bigger change in one week. A price chart shows the past only: it does not show next week.
Find the week across Go up to the dot Read the price How to read one dot. Steepest climb • Week 7 to week 8 • 11 up to 15, up 4 Steepest fall • Week 5 to week 6 • 13 down to 8, down 5 The two biggest moves on the chart. Example 1: Reading one dot Week 1: follow across to week 1, then up to the dot. The price is 10 coins. Example 2: The steepest climb From week 7 to week 8, the price goes from 11 to 15. 15 − 11 = 4 Up four is the steepest climb on the chart. Example 3: The steepest fall From week 5 to week 6, the price goes from 13 to 8. 13 − 8 = 5 Down five is the steepest fall on the chart. Example 4: From start to end Week 1 is 10 and week 8 is 15. 15 − 10 = 5 From start to end the price is up five, with wobbles on the way. Words to know chart A picture of how prices moved over time. dot One moment on the chart: a week and its price. steep A line with a big change in one week. gentle A line with a small change. Watch out A chart shows the past, not next week. The line after the last dot is a fog that nobody can draw. A line that climbed can fall, and a line that fell can climb. A steeper line means a bigger change in one week. Look at the wobbles on the way too, because a chart shows both. Try it In week 6 the price falls from 13 to 8. How far does it fall? In week 8 the price goes from 11 to 15. How far does it climb? Which week has the lowest price? Can a price chart show what the price will be next week? Answers: 1. 5 coins · 2. 4 coins · 3. Week 6 · 4. No
Try at home With a grown-up, find a line chart in a book, paper or website. Read its two lines out loud.
For grown-ups Find a line chart in a book or on a page together and read its two lines out loud: what is across, and what is up? This chart is made up and shows prices of a pretend slice, not any real thing.