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Favourite Sports Pictograph: Read the Chart and Answer

📊 Pictographs, Tally Charts & Pie ChartsAge 6-8EasySports🇺🇸 1st–2nd Grade🇬🇧 Year 2–3🇦🇺 Year 1–2🇮🇳 Class 1–2📐 3.MD.B.3

Next: Temperature Line Graph →

Class 3 children were asked one simple question: which sport do you like playing the most? Their answers are shown in this picture graph. Here is the tricky part — one picture does not stand for one child. Each picture stands for 2 children, so your child has to skip-count in twos to find the real totals.

This free pictograph activity helps kids read a key, count pictures carefully, compare groups and answer questions about the data. It is a friendly first step into charts, and it works well as a printable worksheet at home or in class.

How to play

  1. Read the key first: each picture stands for 2 children.
  2. Count the pictures in one row, then skip-count in twos (2, 4, 6, 8...) to find how many children chose that sport.
  3. Write the total next to each sport and compare the rows: which is the longest, which is the shortest?
  4. Answer the questions, such as how many more children chose cricket than football, and how many children were asked in total.

Your child is practising a real data-handling skill: reading a picture graph with a scale. Because each picture equals 2 children, they must skip-count in twos instead of counting one by one — great multiplication readiness. They also compare quantities (more, fewer, most, least), find differences by subtracting, and add all the values to get a total. Talking about the chart builds maths vocabulary too. To extend the activity, ask your child to survey family members or classmates about their favourite sport and draw their own pictograph with a key of 2. Real data they collect themselves makes the learning stick.

Frequently asked questions

What does the key mean in a pictograph?
The key tells you how many things one picture stands for. In this chart each picture stands for 2 children, so a row of 5 pictures means 10 children. Without reading the key first, the totals will be wrong.
What age is this pictograph activity best for?
It suits children aged about 6 to 8, or Class 1 to Class 3. Younger children can use a key of 1 picture = 1 child, while older children can try keys of 5 or 10 for bigger numbers.
How do I show half a picture?
When the key is 2, half a picture stands for 1 child. This chart uses whole pictures only to keep it simple, but you can introduce half pictures later when your child is confident with skip-counting.
How can we practise this away from the screen?
Print the chart, then run a quick survey at home. Ask family members or friends to name a favourite sport, make tally marks, and draw one picture for every 2 votes. Children remember data they collect themselves.

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Updated 5 Nov 2026