Unit 2 — Data Science: Finding Stories in Numbers. Look at a dataset, ask a question, and answer it visually — no statistics theory required.
Lesson 5 — What Does Data Tell Us?
What you'll achieve: a mini "analyst's report" — an Excel file with at least two charts, plus a 3-sentence conclusion.
Excel
Calculated column
A new column created using a formula based on other columns, rather than typed in directly.
Win percentage
The proportion of matches won, shown as a percentage — useful for comparing teams with a different number of games.
Sort and filter
Reordering data (sort) or temporarily hiding rows that don't match a condition (filter), without changing the underlying data.
I Do
Who "really" was the best football team last season — not just who finished top, but who performed best for what they spent? Raw league position doesn't tell the whole story. Build calculated columns for goal difference, win percentage and cost per point: the data doesn't change, we're just asking it new questions.
We Do
As a class, build the Goal Difference, Win Percentage and Cost per Point columns together.
Build one bar chart of Points by Club together, learning how to select the right data range.
You Do
Decide your own answer: who was REALLY the best team?
Build a second chart that supports your argument, with clear titles and axis labels.
Write exactly 3 sentences: your conclusion, your key evidence, and one surprise in the data.
What you'll achieve: a "data detective" slide — hypothesis, evidence, conclusion, and one supporting chart.
ExcelPowerPoint / Canva
Hypothesis
An idea or prediction you can test using evidence — for example, "I think action games sell best."
COUNTIF / SUMIF
Excel formulas that count or add up values in a range, but only for rows matching a specific condition.
Outlier
A data point that stands out from the general pattern — much higher or lower than the rest.
I Do
Guess which video game genre sells the most worldwide, then test it with real data. COUNTIF counts how many rows match something; SUMIF adds up a number, but only for matching rows. A scatter chart can reveal a trend or an outlier — but two things appearing linked in data doesn't mean one causes the other.
We Do
As a class, write a COUNTIF and matching SUMIF formula for one genre, then repeat for a second.
Build one scatter chart together (Year vs Global Sales) and discuss any pattern or outlier.
You Do
Write your own hypothesis: "I think ___ because ___."
Use COUNTIF and SUMIF to test it, and build a chart showing the evidence.
Build a "data detective" slide: Hypothesis, Evidence, Conclusion and your chart — be honest if you were wrong.
What you'll achieve: a one-page visual "data story" in Canva, exported as a PDF, combining a chart with narrative text.
ExcelCanva
Data story
A short piece of communication that combines a chart with clear narrative text to make a point using evidence.
Specific question
A question narrow and precise enough to actually be answered with the available data, unlike a vague one.
One-pager
A single page designed to communicate one clear idea or finding, combining visuals and concise text.
I Do
Choose ONE dataset from four options (Olympic medals, Spotify top 100, climate data, or Premier League squad ages/fees), come up with your own specific question, analyse it in Excel, then build a one-page visual data story in Canva. A good question is specific enough that the answer is genuinely interesting, not just possible.
We Do
As a class, workshop one example question from vague ("which country is best at the Olympics?") to specific.
Practise the screenshot-and-embed workflow: chart in Excel, screenshot, paste into a new Canva page.
You Do
With your teacher-approved question, analyse your chosen dataset and build one clear chart.
Assemble a one-pager in Canva: title, chart image, narrative text, and a clear conclusion.
BLC