Manav Rachna International School

Sector 14, Faridabad

Session 2024-2025
Subject: ICT
Grade 5
Handout – Introduction to MS-Excel

MS-EXCEL is a part of Microsoft Office suite software. It is an electronic spread sheet with
numerous rows and columns, used for organizing data, graphically represent data(s), and
performing different calculations. It consists of 1048576 rows and 16383 columns, a row and
column together make a cell. Each cell has an address defined by column name and row
number example A1, D2, etc. this is also known as a cell reference.

Benefits of using MS Excel

MS Excel is widely used for various purposes because the data is easy to save, and
information can be added and removed without any discomfort and less hard work.
Given below are a few important benefits of using MS Excel:

Easy To Store Data: Since there is no limit to the amount of information that can be saved in
a spreadsheet, MS Excel is widely used to save data or to analyses data. Filtering information
in Excel is easy and convenient.

Easy To Recover Data: If the information is written on a piece of paper, finding it may take
longer, however, this is not the case with excel spreadsheets. Finding and recovering data is
easy.

Application of Mathematical Formulas: Doing calculations has become easier and less
time-taking with the formulas option in MS excel

More Secure: These spreadsheets can be password secured in a laptop or personal computer
and the probability of losing them is way lesser in comparison to data written in registers or
piece of paper.

Data at One Place: Earlier, data was to be kept in different files and registers when the
paperwork was done. Now, this has become convenient as more than one worksheet can be
added in a single MS Excel file.

Neater and Clearer Visibility of Information: When the data is saved in the form of a table,
analyzing it becomes easier. Thus, information is a spreadsheet that is more readable and
understandable.
Basic Terms and Terminology for Microsoft Excel
Term Quick Explanation

Workbook An Excel file.

Worksheet A worksheet within an Excel file.

Ribbon The menu bar at the top of Excel.

Cell A rectangular box in a worksheet that contains data.

Name Box Shows the cell/table selected; also used to rename cells/tables.

Cell Reference The cell/table selected.

Formula Bar Shows the data/formula/phrase in the cell selected.

Formula A set of instructions for Excel to carry out.

Functions Formulas built into Excel.

Array/Range A group of cells or tables denoted by a colon between the 1st and last cell.

Layout of MS-Excel
 SAVING A WORKBOOK
There are 4 ways to Save a Document:-
1) By clicking on the File tab/ Office button.
2) By using Ctrl + S key combination.
3) By selecting Save button on the Quick Access Toolbar.
4) By pressing F12 key.

Understanding Worksheets and Workbooks

Microsoft Excel is the most popular spreadsheet program currently in use. Businesses
use it for everything from accounting to keeping track of attendance, in school teachers
use it for maintaining records, and home users find a variety of uses for it as well, from
tracking schedules to organizing records for tax time.

Using Excel Worksheets and Workbooks

When creating spreadsheets, you often need to use only a single worksheet inside a
workbook to represent data.
If you want to create a new workbook in Excel, click Blank workbook when you first
open the program or if it is already open, go to the File menu and click New to open a
new file.
Even a single worksheet is contained in a workbook. When you have a workbook with
more than one worksheet, a set of tabs at the bottom of the screen represent the
worksheets in the workbook.

To add a new tab and worksheet, click the + button at the bottom of the screen or click
the Home tab on the ribbon menu, choose Insert and select Insert Sheet.

To add new sheet

Renaming a Worksheet in Excel

When you add a tab, you may want to give it a more evocative name than Excel's
default, which is usually something like Sheet2. To do so, double-click on its name on
its tab or right-click on its tab and select Rename.
Type a descriptive name for the worksheet and press the Enter key.

Deleting a Worksheet
If you want to delete a sheet from your workbook, right-click on its tab and
select Delete.
You can also click a sheet's tab to open it, click the Home tab on the ribbon menu,
choose to Delete and select Delete Sheet.

Browsing between Worksheet

In Excel, use the following shortcut key combinations to switch between worksheets:
 Ctrl+PgUp (page up): Move to the right
 Ctrl+PgDn (page down): Move to the left

Functions and Charts

While using formulas in MS Excel we have to give the expression where we give cell
address and mathematical operators. Suppose we have to give repeated sets of formulas
on daily use, so it would be easier for us if some of them are predefined.

MS Excel Function:
The function is a predefined formula that performs calculations using specific values
in a particular order.
Excel includes many common functions that can be used to quickly find the sum,
average, count, maximum value, and minimum value for a range of cells.

Use of MS Excel Functions:

In order to use functions correctly, you'll need to understand the different parts of a
function and how to create arguments to calculate values and cell references.

The parts of a function

In order to work correctly, a function must be written a specific way, which is called
the syntax.

The basic syntax for a function is an equals sign (=), the function name (SUM, for
example), and one or more arguments.

Arguments contain the information you want to calculate. The function in the example
below would add the values of the cell range A1:A20.
Working with arguments
Arguments can refer to both individual cells and cell ranges and must be enclosed
within parentheses. You can include one argument or multiple arguments, depending
on the syntax required for the function.

For example, the function =AVERAGE(B1:B9) would calculate the average of the
values in the cell range B1:B9. This function contains only one argument.

Multiple arguments must be separated by a comma. For example, the

function =SUM(A1:A3, C1:C2, E2) will add the values of all cells in the three
arguments.
Using functions
There are a variety of functions. Here are some of the most common functions you'll
use:

 SUM: This function adds all the values of the cells in the
argument.
 PRODUCT: This function multiplies the cell values in the
argument.
 AVERAGE: This function determines the average of the values
included in the argument. It calculates the sum of the cells and then
divides that value by the number of cells in the argument.
 COUNT: This function counts the number of cells with numerical
data in the argument. This function is useful for quickly counting
items in a cell range.
 MAX: This function determines the highest cell value included in
the argument.
 MIN: This function determines the lowest cell value included in
the argument.
These are some of the common ones. There are a variety of functions and you can
explore them.

How to use a function:

In our example below, we'll use a basic function to calculate the average price per
unit for a list of recently ordered items using the AVERAGE function.

1. Select the cell that will contain the function. In our example, we'll
select cell E8.
 2. Type the equals sign (=) and enter the desired function name. In our
example, we'll type =AVERAGE.

3. Enter the cell range for the argument inside parentheses. In our
example, we'll type (E3:E7). This formula will add the values of cells
E3:E7 and then divide that value by the total number of cells in the range
to determine the average.

4. Press Enter on your keyboard. The function will be calculated, and

the result will appear in the cell. In our example, the average price per
unit of items ordered is calculated in cell E8.
There are wide range of functions in Excel which are given in Formulas tab.
Use can explore them.
Representing your data through Charts
Charts help you visualize your data in a way that creates maximum impact on your
audience. Learn to create a chart and add a trend line.
You can start your document from a recommended chart or choose one from our
collection of pre-built chart templates.

How to make a charts in Excel

Because graphs and charts serve similar functions, Excel groups all graphs under the “chart” category.
To create a graph in Excel, follow the steps below.

Select Range to Create a Graph from Workbook Data

1. Highlight the cells that contain the data you want to use in your graph by clicking
and dragging your mouse across the cells.
2. Your cell range will now be highlighted in grey.
 Choose the desired chart and you will get the chart on the excel sheet.

Components of charts:
Charts contain several elements, such as a title, axis labels, a legend, and gridlines.

Types of Charts in Excel

 Column Chart
 Line Chart
 Pie Chart
 Understanding Cell Referencing and Formulas

Cell Referencing:
In Excel, a cell reference (example A1) is a combination of column name (i..e., A)
followed by a row number (i.e., 1).
By default settings, each cell in Excel is denoted with a column letter and a row number.
While writing formulas, the user can refer to cells/ range of cells which is the ultimate
power of cell references in MS Excel.
For example, suppose we have the following data in cell A1 = 10 and cell A2 = 5.
Let’s say you type the formula as =A1+A2. Then Excel shall calculate the sum of values
present in those cells which are 10+5 = 15.

Types of Cell References in MS Excel:

1. Relative Reference
2. Absolute Reference

1. Relative Cell Referencing in Excel:

A Relative cell reference changes when copying or moving the formula or cell value to a
different location in the worksheet. Relative references are very useful when you have a
range of cells and you want the references to relatively change as and when you copy the
formula down to other cells.

Let us understand this with a small example.

Below is an image that displays tables. Where when you give the formula to find the total
cost and when you copy the same formula for the below cells, the cell address changes
relatively.

Observe the cell referencing changing in the formula bar.

2. Absolute Cell Referencing in Excel:

An absolute cell reference does not change while copying or moving the formula to a
different location in the worksheet.
The cell references are fixed.
Now you would wonder how can you fix cell reference?
To fix the cell references, we need to add a Dollar sign ($) before the column name and
the row number.
Like if you want to fix D4 then it would be written as $D$4.