Fake Chart Detective
Charts can tell the truth — or bend it. A stack of charts just came in. Some are lying. Catch them before we print.
Concept
Charts don't lie — but the people who make them do. Kid learns to spot truncated axes, cherry-picked ranges, and misleading scales that make data say whatever the creator wants.
The Experience
Kid is shown dramatic-looking real-world charts — one claims sales "doubled," but the Y-axis starts at 95, not 0, so the real change is a 3% increase; another claims crime is "skyrocketing" by cherry-picking 3 months out of a 10-year decline.
Each round follows the same pattern: form a gut reaction to the chart, then see the raw numbers behind it and rebuild the chart honestly — the gap between the manipulated version and the honest one is the lie.
The final challenge flips the exercise: given one set of raw numbers, build two different charts from it — one that tells a positive story and one that tells a negative story — putting the kid in the chart-maker's seat.
What Math Does The Kid Do?
- Reads and interprets axes, scales, and ranges.
- Calculates actual percentage change from raw numbers.
- Identifies a truncated axis and recalculates with the full range.
- Builds charts from identical data using different framings.
- Compares the visual impression of a chart against the real mathematical change.
Why This Matters
You'll never take a dramatic chart at face value again — checking the axis first, before the story it's telling, becomes second nature.
Frequently asked questions
Fake Chart Detective is tagged for Grades 6-12.
No — Fake Chart Detective plays directly in the browser, right on this page. No login, no download.
Fact-check a real-world claim — is it true, or does it just look true?
No — Fake Chart Detective is free to play, no sign-up needed.