Computer Skills

Beginner

36 mins

Teacher/Student led

+75 XP

What you need:
Chromebook/Laptop/PC or iPad/Tablet

Cell Formatting: Numbers, Currency, Dates, Alignment

Learn to format cells as currency, dates and plain numbers, and align headings so your spreadsheet reads professionally. You'll explore the format menu, build a small class-fundraiser budget step by step with self-check checkpoints, then apply the same pattern to your own project budget.

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1 Introduction
2 Explore the Format Menu
3 Worked Example: Format a Class Fundraiser Budget
4 What Would Text-dates Look Like?
5 Portfolio Build
6 Lesson Summary
Quiz

1 - Introduction

Welcome

A spreadsheet does not automatically know that 1250 is money, that 15/01/2026 is a date, or that 0.23 is a percentage. Until you tell it, it is all just digits on a page. Today you'll learn how to give your data the correct format so it looks right to the reader and behaves right when you sort, filter, or calculate.

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

Format cells as currency (€), dates and plain numbers
Adjust alignment so numbers and headings look intentional
Explain why a real date sorts correctly and a text date does not

Warm-up: spot the messy sheet

Imagine a classmate shows you two budget sheets for the class fundraiser. You have to hand one of them to the teacher. Which do you choose — and why?

Sheet A	Sheet B
date \| item \| cost 15/1/26 \| bus \| 3.5 2/2/26 \| cake \| 7.8 10/1/26 \| paint \| 15	Date \| Item \| Cost 10 Jan 2026 \| Paint \| €15.00 15 Jan 2026 \| Bus \| €3.50 02 Feb 2026 \| Cake \| €7.80

Sheet B looks finished because of formatting — same numbers, same dates, but the reader can scan it in a second. That's what today is about.

Key concepts

Concept	Why it matters	Example
Number format — how a cell displays a value, without changing what is stored	The reader sees €12.50, not 12.5 — that is the difference between a finished sheet and a messy one.	Your pocket-money tracker shows each amount as €12.50 down the column
Date format — a real date value, not just text that looks like a date	Real dates sort in calendar order. Text dates sort alphabetically (1 Jan, 10 Jan, 2 Jan…) and break.	Your class-trip savings log only sorts chronologically if the Date column is a real date
Alignment — where text and numbers sit inside the cell (left, centre, right)	Numbers right-aligned line up by the decimal point so totals are easy to compare at a glance.	Cost column right-aligned down the list; heading row bold and centred across the top

Teacher Notes

Use the Sheet A vs Sheet B comparison as a quick hand-up vote — it hooks students immediately and makes 'formatting' feel like a real decision, not a chore. Decimal places and percentage format are covered briefly inside the worked example rather than front-loaded here.

👇 Mark your steps as done as you complete them.

+5 XP

2 - Explore the Format Menu

Before you apply formats, take 6 minutes to find them and notice how they behave. Open any blank spreadsheet and type the same number ({{code:1250.5}}) into four different cells, then try a different format on each.

Exploration

Find the number format dropdown in your spreadsheet app. In Excel Online it sits on the Home ribbon in the Number group; in Google Sheets it is under {{menu:Format -> Number}}. What format types are listed? Note any three that catch your eye.
Type {{code:1250.5}} into four cells and apply a different format to each (Plain number, Currency, Date, Percentage). Which format surprised you — and why? (Hint: look at what Percentage did to your number.)
Find the decimal places buttons (the two with {{code:.00}} and small arrows). Try adding and removing decimals on a currency cell. Does the stored value change, or just the display?
Right-align a column of numbers, then left-align the same column. Which is easier to read as a list of costs — and why do you think that is?

Teacher Notes

Students should finish this step with a rough mental map of where the format controls live — they don't need to try every format, just enough to orient.

👇 Mark your steps as done as you complete them.

+15 XP

3 - Worked Example: Format a Class Fundraiser Budget

You'll now build a small class-fundraiser budget and format it step by step. After each formatting change you'll see a checkpoint showing what your sheet should look like — use it to self-check before moving on. This is the same pattern you'll use on your own {{code:05_project_budget}} in the next step.

Teacher Notes

The pedagogical anchor is the sort test: if the Date column sorts by calendar order, it is a real date; if it sorts alphabetically, it is still text. The data_table checkpoints mean a student whose sheet diverges can see exactly where.

+15 XP

4 - What Would Text-dates Look Like?

You saw your real dates sort into calendar order (15, 16, 17, 18, 19 January). If those dates had been stored as text instead of real dates, the sort would have ordered them alphabetically — by the first character, then the next, and so on. For dates that all start with 0 or 1, the result looks almost right but is not:

If Date column is text (wrong order)	If Date column is a real date (right order)
02/02/2026 (Feb) 10/01/2026 (Jan 10) 15/01/2026 (Jan 15) 16/01/2026 (Jan 16) 17/01/2026 (Jan 17)	10/01/2026 (Jan 10) 15/01/2026 (Jan 15) 16/01/2026 (Jan 16) 17/01/2026 (Jan 17) 02/02/2026 (Feb 2)

Read the left column: a February date ended up at the top because '0' comes before '1' in the alphabet. That's the bug you avoid by making the Date column a real date.

Common issues

Issue	Solution
My dates show as ##### or as plain numbers like 45679	The column is too narrow (double-click the right edge of the column header to widen it) or the cell is still formatted as Number — reselect and apply Short Date / Date.
Currency shows $ instead of €	Excel Online: Home ribbon → currency dropdown → € Euro. Google Sheets: {{menu:Format -> Number -> Custom currency}} and choose €.
I typed 23 and applied Percentage — now it shows 2300%	Percentage format multiplies by 100. Type 0.23 and format as %, or type 23 and leave the % in the heading instead.
My column of dates won't sort in date order	The dates are stored as text, not real dates. Reselect the column, apply Short Date / Date, and retype any entries that don't reformat — then sort again.

Teacher Notes

Emphasise that students can always test 'is this a real date?' by sorting. It's the fastest diagnostic.

+10 XP

5 - Portfolio Build

Independent Practice

Your goal: Apply the formatting pattern you just practised to your own Something Real project budget, so when someone opens it — a teacher, a parent, or the adult in charge of whatever you're planning — the numbers read as money, the dates read as dates, and the sheet looks like you meant it.

Time: ~10 minutes

Task: Open {{code:05_project_budget}} from your {{code:Digital_Portfolio}} folder. Format the Cost column as euro currency with 2 decimal places. If your sheet has a Date column, format it as a real date; if it doesn't, add one and fill in when each cost happens. Then make the heading row bold and centred so it stands out from the data. Keep using the same file — you are upgrading the sheet you already built, not making a new one.

Success criteria:

Every cost shows with a € symbol and two decimal places, right-aligned down the column
The Date column sorts correctly when you test it with an ascending sort (then undo)
The heading row is visibly distinct from the data rows — bold, centred, and scannable at a glance

Teacher Notes

The sort-test on the Date column is the pedagogical anchor for objective 3 — if the sort breaks, the column is still text.

+15 XP

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Copyright Notice
This lesson is copyright of Coding Ireland 2017 - 2025. Unauthorised use, copying or distribution is not allowed.

Cell Formatting: Numbers, Currency, Dates, Alignment

Teacher Class Feed

1 - Introduction

Welcome

By the end of this lesson, you will be able to:

Warm-up: spot the messy sheet

Key concepts

2 - Explore the Format Menu

3 - Worked Example: Format a Class Fundraiser Budget

4 - What Would Text-dates Look Like?

Common issues

5 - Portfolio Build

Independent Practice

Unlock the Full Learning Experience

XP