# Data Detective: Spot the Misleading Chart

> Teams examine a set of charts and headlines and race to find what is misleading: cut axes, missing baselines, cherry-picked dates and more. Duration: 45 minutes. Group size: 6–100 people. Setting: Indoor. Below you will find a step-by-step guide, the materials and facilitator tips.

URL: https://www.bravodays.com/en/team-building-library/data-detective
Last updated: 2026-10-21
Publisher: BravoDays (https://www.bravodays.com)

## Key facts

- **Duration:** 45 minutes
- **Group size:** 6–100 people
- **Setting:** Indoor
- **Energy level:** Active
- **Materials:** A pack of eight to twelve printed charts with short claims, some fair and some misleading (prepare in advance or use public examples), Answer sheets and pens, A timer and a simple scoreboard
- **Price:** Free, no sign-up

## Objective

Build the habit of questioning numbers and charts before using them in decisions.

## Materials

- A pack of eight to twelve printed charts with short claims, some fair and some misleading (prepare in advance or use public examples)
- Answer sheets and pens
- A timer and a simple scoreboard

## Step by step

1. Explain the challenge: for each chart, decide whether the claim is supported and, if not, why.
2. Split into teams of three to five and hand out the chart packs.
3. Give teams 20 minutes to work through the charts and write down their verdicts and reasons.
4. Go through the answers together, scoring a point for each correct verdict and a bonus for naming the exact trap.
5. Ask teams which traps they have seen in their own reports.
6. Agree two or three questions everyone will ask before trusting a chart at work.

## Facilitator tips

- Include a few charts that are perfectly fine, so teams do not assume every chart is a trick.
- Common traps: truncated axes, missing comparison, percentages of tiny numbers, correlation presented as cause, and selective time periods.

## Related pages

- [Team building library](https://www.bravodays.com/en/team-building-library)
- [Get a quote](https://www.bravodays.com/en/get-a-quote)