Today you bank Specialism Module 3 Key Assignment 2. You will turn real project numbers into at least two different charts, write a plain-English interpretation under each one, and export a clean named PDF for your portfolio. Same idea as showing a boss or customer, in thirty seconds, which week made money and where costs ate profit.
Open this first: Open {{code:sm3_ka1_problem_solver.xlsx}} (or your Google Sheet version) from {{code:09_specialism/sm3}}, or any clean project numbers you already have. If you cannot open a file with usable numbers, put your hand up now so your teacher can set a fallback before the quality talk starts.
With your numbers on screen: if a supervisor, examiner, boss, or sponsor only had thirty seconds, which pattern should they see first: a trend over time, a comparison between categories, or a share of a total?
KA2 is not just "make two charts". The SEC needs charts that fit the data and interpretations a non-technical reader can act on. Think boss or customer, not decoration.
Model shape: Revenue rises overall across six weeks. The biggest week is week 6 at €330. The smallest is week 3 at €120. Decision: order extra cases for the final market weekend and check what slowed week 3.
VET in this course means the Vocational Education Task pack: a place where strong spreadsheet and chart evidence can be reused later, alongside Work Experience and other LCA work.
In the next activity your teacher builds the first market-stall chart live. You then complete the second chart, both write-ups if needed, and a PDF using the same quality bar. Your own KA2 workbook must reach that standard with your project data.
Build a worked-example chart workbook for a small market-stall project. Your teacher completes the first chart (column + four-part interpretation) live on the board. You enter or finish the cost data, build the pie chart, write its interpretation, and export a named PDF. That is the quality bar for your own KA2 evidence next.
If the first chart takes longer than expected, that is normal. Nail the column chart and its four-part note first; the pie chart reuses the same pattern.
| Issue | Solution |
|---|---|
| My chart is plotting the wrong columns | Select only the labels and the value column you want. If extra columns are included, delete the chart and select the range again before inserting a new one. |
| Both of my charts are the same type | KA2 needs two different chart types. Keep one comparison or trend chart (column or line) and pair it with a composition chart (pie or doughnut) or another clearly different type that fits the second question. |
| My interpretation just describes colours or layout | Rewrite it using the four-part pattern: overall trend, biggest value, smallest value, and one decision a reader could act on. |
| The PDF cuts off the chart or looks tiny | Use print preview first. Switch to landscape if the chart is wide, set the print area to the chart and interpretation only, and scale to fit one page. Save as {{code:sm3_ka2_charts.pdf}} (or {{code:sm3_ka2_worked_example.pdf}} for the practice file), not Untitled. |
| I do not know which project data to use / my KA1 file is missing or messy | Prefer {{code:sm3_ka1_problem_solver}} or any clean project dataset already in {{code:sm3/}}. If that file is missing or messy, ask your teacher for a dual-table fallback on a fresh sheet: Table A with at least four series values (weeks, days, or categories) for a column or line chart, and Table B with at least three category amounts for a pie chart. Do not use three loose cells alone — you need two chartable shapes. Ask your teacher to initial the alternate source so KA2 can still proceed today. |
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