← L² Lab
📊 Data Sense
Card 06
📉 🔍 😱

A news report shows a graph of tax rates skyrocketing! The line goes almost straight up. What is the first thing you look at?

💭 How to Think About This

Charts are like photos: they can be cropped to tell a lie. The most common lie is zooming in so far that a "mole hill" looks like a "mountain."

Inspect the chart:

🤔 Which thinking lens(es) did you use?

Select all the lenses you used:

👨‍👩‍👧 For Parents & Teachers

🌱 Everyday Media Literacy

Parent: "Look at this graph! Candy prices doubled!"
Kid: "Wait... the bottom says $1.00 and the top says $1.05. It's a 5 cent difference. Why is the line so steep?"
Parent: "Because they didn't start at zero. Good catch."