Name________________________________________________________________________ Period______

9th Grade Graphing Practice

Graphing is an important procedure used to display data collected. Graphs must be constructed correctly to
accurately portray the data. Many times the wrong graph is used to show the data and it can be confusing.
A graph contains six major parts: The title, the independent variable, the dependent variable, the scales for
each variable, the legend, and the key.
The title: By reading the title, the reader should get an idea about the graph. It should be a short and concise
label placed above the graph.
The Independent Variable (manipulated variable): the variable that can be controlled by the experimenter.
It can include time (dates, minutes, hours), depth (feet, meters) temperature (Celsius). This variable is placed on
the X-axis (horizontal axis).
The Dependent Variable (responding variable): the variable that is directly affected or changed by the
independent variable. It is the result of what happens because of the independent variable. This variable is
placed on the Y-axis (vertical axis).
The Scales for each Variable: The scales should start with 0 and climb based on intervals such as: multiples of
2, 5, 10, 20, 25, 50, or 100. Your data numbers will determine the scale of the numbers.
The Legend: a description about the graph's data. It should be short and to the point and placed under the
graph.
The Key: used to show what part of the graph is represented.
Bar vs. Line Graph: Use a line graph when the independent variable has continuous numerical data. Use a
bar graph when the independent variables are separate categories.

Procedure 1:
The following are pH values of common household
substances taken by three different teams using pH probes.
1. What is the dependent variable and why?
2. What is the independent variable and why?

Substance
Lemon Juice
Baking Soda
Orange Juice
Battery Acid
Apples
Tomatoes
Bottled Water

pH of
Team 1
2.4
8.4
3.5
1.0
3.0
4.5
6.7
10.5
2.2

pH of
Team 2
2.0
8.3
4.0
0.7
3.2
4.2
7.0
10.3
2.9

pH of
Team 3
2.2
8.7
3.4
0.5
3.5
4.0
7.2
10.6
3.0

3. What title and legend would you give the graph?

Milk of Magnesia
Graph Title:
Vinegar
_________________________________________________
Legend: __________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________
4. What are the possible reasons for variation in data between the teams?

5. If a pH of 14 is a strong base and a pH of 1 is a strong acid which substance is the most acidic?
Now graph this data on a separate paper. Dont forget all the parts that are needed. Label it as required.

Procedure 2:
Diabetes is a disease affecting the insulin producing glands of the pancreas. If there is not enough insulin being produced
by these cells, the amount of glucose in the blood will remain high. A blood glucose level above 140 for an extended
period of time is not considered normal. Answer the following questions.
1. What is the dependent variable and why?
2. What is the independent variable and why?
3. What title and legend would you give the graph?
Title: ___________________________________________
Legend: __________________________________________
_________________________________________________
_________________________________________________

Hours After
Eating
0.5
1
1.5
2.0
2.5
3.0
4.0

Glucose mL/Liter
Person A
172
157
145.2
136
141
137
129

Glucose mL/Liter
Person B
181
198.3
233
244
238
226.8
201

4. Which, if any, of the above individuals (A or B) has diabetes?

5. What data do you have to support your hypothesis?
6. How many hours after eating is the glucose level the highest for each person?
Now graph the data on a separate paper. Do a line graph. You can make one graph to show both variables. Be sure to
include all six required parts of a graph.
7. Who has biggest spike in glucose levels? At what time period does this occur?
8. What trend do you see in blood glucose levels after eating in both person A and B?

More practice on dependent and independent variables:

Identify the dependent (responding) and independent (manipulated) variables in each experiment.
1. The higher the temperature of water, the faster the egg will cook.
Independent:
Dependent:
2. An investigation was conducted to see if keeping the lights on for different amounts of time each day affected the
number of eggs chickens laid.
Independent:
Dependent:
3. The distance per liter of gasoline driven by cars was measured for cars traveling at different speeds
Independent:
Dependent:
4. Lemons trees receiving the most water produce largest lemons.
Independent:
Dependent:
5. The amount of algae growth in lakes seems to be directly related to the number of bags of phosphate fertilizer
sold by local merchants.
Independent:
Dependent: