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Exam Tips for Box Plots

Part of Box Plots · GCSE GCSE Mathematics revision

This exam tips covers Exam Tips for Box Plots within Box Plots for GCSE Mathematics. Revise Box Plots in Statistics for GCSE Mathematics with 18 exam-style questions and 20 flashcards. This is a high-frequency topic, so it is worth revising until the explanation feels precise and repeatable. It is section 8 of 11 in this topic. Treat this as a marking guide for what examiners are looking for, not just a fact list.

Topic position

Section 8 of 11

Practice

18 questions

Recall

20 flashcards

💡 Exam Tips for Box Plots

Drawing Box Plots:

  • Use a ruler: Draw neat, straight lines
  • Equal scale: Use consistent spacing on your number line
  • Clear markers: Mark all five values clearly
  • Proper proportions: Box and whisker lengths should reflect actual data
  • Vertical alignment: Keep everything at the same height

Finding Quartiles:

  • Even n: Split data exactly in half, find medians of each half
  • Odd n: Exclude the overall median, find medians of each half
  • Double-check: Q1 < Median < Q3 always
  • Calculator method: Learn your calculator's quartile functions

Interpretation:

  • Compare medians: For typical values
  • Compare IQRs: For consistency
  • Look at skewness: Position of median in box
  • Consider context: What do the numbers represent?

Keep building this topic

Read this section alongside the surrounding pages in Box Plots. That gives you the full topic sequence instead of a single isolated revision point.

Comparing Two DistributionsSpecial Cases and OutliersThe Five-Number SummaryKey Facts About Box Plots

Practice Questions for Box Plots

On a box plot, what does the box (the rectangle) represent?

  • A. The interquartile range — the spread of the middle 50% of the data
  • B. The full range of the data from minimum to maximum
  • C. The top 25% of the data only
  • D. The median value of the data
1 markfoundation

Two athletics clubs record the 100m sprint times (in seconds) for their members. The five-number summaries are shown below. Club A: Min = 11.2, Q1 = 12.4, Median = 13.1, Q3 = 14.2, Max = 16.5 Club B: Min = 12.0, Q1 = 13.5, Median = 14.8, Q3 = 16.1, Max = 17.3 Compare the distributions of sprint times for the two clubs. You must use the data to support your answer. (3 marks)

3 marksstandard

Quick Recall Flashcards

What is the five-number summary?
The five-number summary consists of: 1. Minimum (smallest value) 2. Q1 (lower quartile) 3. Median (middle value) 4. Q3 (upper quartile) 5. Maximum (largest value)
What is a box plot?
A box plot (or box-and-whisker diagram) is a visual display of the five-number summary of a dataset: minimum, Q1, median, Q3, and maximum. It shows the distribution and spread of data in a compact form.

18 questions on Box Plots — practise free

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Comparing Two Distributions

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Special Cases and Outliers