Maths Library

Tally Charts and Pictographs: Year 3 maths

This topic covers collecting data using tally marks and displaying or reading categorical data in pictograms. The worksheet practises reading tally totals, drawing tally marks, and interpreting pictograms with symbols representing one or more items.

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What this covers

Tally Charts and Pictographs is taught in Year 3 (age 8 to 9) as a main teaching focus. It sits in the Statistics strand.

Worked example

In a pictogram, one circle represents 4 books. How many books do 3 and a half circles represent

  1. Calculate the whole circles: 3 × 4 = 12
  2. Calculate the half circle: 42 = 2
  3. Add them together: 12 + 2 = 14

Answer: 14

Difficulty scale

The sheet generator offers five difficulty settings for this topic.

  1. Reading simple tally counts up to 10
  2. Interpreting pictograms where 1 symbol represents 1 item
  3. Drawing and reading tallies grouped in fives up to 30
  4. Interpreting pictograms where 1 symbol represents 2, 5, or 10 items
  5. Solving two-step comparison problems using pictograms with half symbols

Common mistakes

  • Counting individual tally marks without grouping the diagonal slash as five
  • Ignoring the key in a pictogram and counting each icon as 1 item

Curriculum links

Indicative matches to Australian Curriculum v9. Check wording and codes against the official document.

  • AC9M3ST01 Organise and display data using tally charts, lists, and simple column graphs.

Sample sheet and answers

Six questions at the level's usual difficulty. Open the editor to change, add or regenerate any of them.

Tally Charts and Pictographs

Year 3 maths

Qs
6
Marks
12
NameDateScore / 12
1.
The tally chart shows favourite colours. How many people chose blue?
RedBlueGreenYellow
[2]
2.
The tally chart shows favourite colours. How many people chose green?
RedBlueGreenYellow
[2]
3.
The tally chart shows favourite colours. How many people chose green?
RedBlueGreenYellow
[2]
4.
The tally chart shows favourite colours. How many people chose green?
RedBlueGreenYellow
[2]
5.
The tally chart shows favourite colours. How many people chose green?
RedBlueGreenYellow
[2]
6.
The tally chart shows favourite colours. How many people chose red?
RedBlueGreenYellow
[2]

Answer key

  1. 7Count the tally marks next to Blue: 7
  2. 12Count the tally marks next to Green: 12
  3. 10Count the tally marks next to Green: 10
  4. 12Count the tally marks next to Green: 12
  5. 6Count the tally marks next to Green: 6
  6. 9Count the tally marks next to Red: 9