Teaching sequence

Work through this resource material in the following sequence:

10 minutes

Tune In: How litter data can tell a story

20 minutes

Find Out: Making data clear by choosing the right graphs

25 minutes

Take Action: Designing a digital infographic

5 minutes

Reflection

Learning intentions

Students will:

choose appropriate ways to represent a dataset, considering the impact and its audience
compare different types of data visualisations, including graphs and infographics.

Success criteria

Students can:

choose and create a suitable data visualisation (graph/chart/infographic) based on a given dataset and audience.

Tune In: How litter data can tell a story

Step 1

Show students a few sample infographics from 2019 - 2022 Clean Up Australia National Litter Reports: sample 1, sample 2, and sample 3.

Ask students to observe each infographic carefully. Encourage them to think about what grabs their attention. Ask them to comment on how the data is presented, such as the use of colours, icons, and charts. Ask students to consider how these design choices help tell the story of litter in each state.

Step 2

Keep one of the sample reports on display.

In pairs, students work through the Think, Pair, Share routine to explore the following questions, one by one:

Why is this data important to be shared?
Who is the target audience?
Is the purpose to inform or to inspire action?
Which features grab your attention the most?

Find Out: Making data clear by choosing the right graph

Step 1

Display the Visual Explainer and revise different types of data display and how they convey a message.

Lead a class discussion about the different types of ways to display data:

What’s great about bar charts compared to pie charts or line graphs? What’s not so great?
How do the visuals (colours, shapes, layout) in infographics help you to interpret information?
Are there any display types that might be misleading or confusing? How?
How can combining charts and images in an infographic improve the messaging?
Which type of data display would work best to share information quickly with a large audience? Why?

Step 2

Let’s take a look at the state of litter in our own state. Using a data sample from a state report that is not your home state, to create different graph types. Demonstrate using spreadsheet software (e.g. Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel). The idea is to show how the same data can be represented in different ways.

Step 3

Ask students to select data from their home state using the Clean Up Australia Litter Report FY24 fact sheets and use spreadsheet software to create various graphs to represent the data.

Learning support: Guide students to select either a bar or line graph and guide them step by step, labelling and plotting the data together.

Learning extension: Ask students to create different types of graphs that represent information from 2024, 2023 and 2022 on the same data set. Then, evaluate which graph type best shows changes or comparisons over time and explain their reasoning.

Step 4

Ask students to choose two graphs that best represent their chosen data set. Then, they should complete questions 1-4 on the Student Worksheet to reflect on and explain their choices.

Step 5

Students team up with another pair to share their work and give each other feedback. Ask them to complete question 5 on the Student Worksheet.

Take Action: Designing a digital infographic

Step 1

Display sample 1 infographic. Revisit how the graphs and other elements (charts, colours, icons, stats) work together to deliver a clear and impactful message.

Step 2

Explain to students that they will use their own graphs to design their own digital infographic. Their aim is to demonstrate what they now know about effective infographics and present their data in a way that informs and inspires positive action.

Some reminders to give:

combine data with visual and short explanations
use colour and be creative
think about who your audience is and how to tailor your infographic to communicate a call to action.

Encourage them to refer to the rubric on the Student Worksheet to check that they have included all the necessary elements of a high-quality infographic.

Learning extension: Students can incorporate animations into their digital infographic.

Step 3

Invite students to display their infographics around the school, either printed or via a QR code if animations are included. Their mission is to motivate and encourage the school community to participate regularly in cleanup efforts by spreading strong messages, meaningful data, and clear calls to action.

Teacher note: If students would like to share beyond the school community, they are requested to send their final version to education@cleanup.com.au before posting or publishing to avoid any unintended misinformation.

Reflection

Wrap up with a whole class discussion around the reflection prompt from the Student Worksheet (Question 6):

How could your infographic inspire action beyond just awareness and be used to promote your school's next clean up?

Students record their reflections.

Graph it Like You Mean it

Summary

Lesson Guides and Printables

Graph it Like You Mean it

Summary

Lesson Guides and Printables