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Excel

Basics:

Projects

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In this class we will walk through three popular projects used by Excel users and

practice a variety of foundational skills necessary for more even more advanced

projects.

Today we’ll cover:

Three ideas for Excel Projects

Data entry

Formatting Options – Borders, Bold, Text Wrap

Basic Equations – Addition, Subtraction, and Multiplication

Using this Workbook

When we open the workbook you’ll see that there is information setup on the left and right of the

worksheet. The information on the left is what we will be working on today, whereas the information on

the right is the completed version we are trying to reproduce. Feel free to consult the right side of the

worksheet for the correct formatting and options and answers whenever necessary.

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The Worksheet Now we’ll cover some of the very basics to make sure everyone is on the same page.

Let’s start by opening up a blank workbook.

To open a blank workbook, click on the Microsoft Office Folder located on the desktop.

Now double click on the icon labeled Microsoft Excel. Once opened, you’ll see a number of pre-created

templates that already have a basic layout and design to them.

Finally click on blank worksheet,

or simply hit the enter key to get

started.

First, an Excel worksheet is a document where users enter their data, so it can be formatted and manipulated. Data, which can be text or numerals, is entered into little boxes called cells. Cells are arranged in columns and rows. At the top of the worksheet are capital letters—these letters denote columns.

On the left side of the worksheet are numbers—these denote rows. Where rows and columns intersect is known as a cell. A cell is a place where you enter data on worksheets. A cell address is the location used to find a particular cell in a worksheet. For instance, a cell at “C3” is in the C column, 3rd row. Notice how the Cell address is listed in the address box above the worksheet.

A group of related data arranged in cells, usually along the X-Y axis, is called a table. If you arrange a table in graphic form, it is called a chart.

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Now that we know the basics, let’s open up the “Excel Basics Projects Workbook” located on the

desktop.

If you look at the bottom you’ll see that multiple

worksheets can be created in a single workbook. If we

look at the bottom of the excel sheet you will see

there are three tabs “Database, Shopping List, Rubric”

today we will be working through each one of them, but for now let’s focus on Database.

*Project Idea: Database

Many people use Excel to compile a list of clients, friends on a guest list, club members, and more in an

Excel worksheet. This allows information to be searched, organized, and sorted quickly and easily. Today

we’ll start working on an example database of clients in a fictional business.

Cells Cells need data to be useful. Cells can contain words, numbers, percentages, symbols, and more. Here is a basic worksheet with data in the cells. Note that text is left-justified in a cell, and numbers are right-justified. This helps to keep them separate visually.

To select cells on a worksheet, click on one with your mouse, or use the arrow keys on your keyboard. To enter text in a cell, simply click in it and start typing. Once you are finished typing in a cell, press enter to “lock” that cell content and move to the next cell.

If a cell already has content in it and you want to edit it, then you have to double-click in a cell to

edit it. If you just click in a cell that’s filled with content and start typing, you’ll automatically delete

the existing content.

Let’s Try It!

Enter the following information into the left hand side of the worksheet (this data is also located on

the right side of the worksheet.

9/15/2016 Lincoln Abraham 640-557-5555 11 E Lincoln Chicago Il.

9/16/2016 Washington George 630-558-5555 22 S White House Elmhurst Il.

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Fitting Rows and columns to information

One thing you might notice quickly is that our information is often cut off if it is too long. When

entering text that exceeds the width or height of a cell in may be hidden by overlapping cells.

Here’s an example from the worksheet we have been

working on, notice how the street addresses look cut-off

and incomplete.

To automatically change the width or height of a cell to match the data in those cells move your

mouse between the two columns (or rows) you’d like to adjust, left-click hold and pull to the left of

the right to adjust the column.

Even easier, again simply move your mouse

between columns or rows and double click with

the left side of the mouse. This will automatically

size the row or column to the longest data in that

column.

We can also use the Wrap Text Button to have the text not

push past the borders of our cell.

Auto filling Dates:

One of the major benefits of using Excel to keep track of your information is the many automated

features that save you time and energy. In this worksheet you’ll see what have some dates in the

leftmost column. If we didn’t want to manually type the new chronological date

every time we can use the Autofill Handle to generate these dates almost

automatically. First, move your mouse down to the corner of a cell that contains

a calendar date. When the cursor is directly over the right of the cell, you will

see its shape changes into a back plus symbol.

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Now left click and drag down to start filling in dates. In

the bottom right hand corner you will also see the end

date that will be achieved by the action. Once you let

go, the dates will be entered!

At this point we should all have a two worksheet that have been completely filled out without

overlapping text anywhere. We’ll next start working with numbers, as this is where Excel really starts to

shine.

Click on the tab “Shopping List” to open up our next worksheet.

*Project Idea: Shopping List/Order*

Many people use Excel for as their personal calculator. Both simple and more complex calculations can

be made and tracked using worksheets allowing you to ditch the calculator and scratch paper. In

addition, more advanced users can link data so it For this project, we’ve put together a simple shopping

list but using the same procedures we could create files like annual budgets, purchase orders, savings

plans and more!

Working with numbers in Excel

Just like adding letters, simply double-click on a cell to add numbers to it.

Let’s Try It!

Using the following information (or the figures in right of the

worksheet) to complete the “Cost” and “Number” columns

of the spreadsheet.

Lays Chips 2.50 3

Pepsi 2 Liter 2.00 1

Dish Soap 5.99 1

Avocado 0.99 2

Whole Milk Gallon 2.99 1

Chewy Bars 5.99 2

Toilet Paper 15.99 1

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Now that we have some information in our spreadsheet that’s do some

simple calculations.

In this case we would like to multiply the individual “cost” by the “Number”

To start a mathematical equation click on a blank cell (in this case D3) and

enter “=”.

Once you have entered the = symbol click on the cell B3. Notice how the cell

receives a colored border and appears in our previously blank cell. We have

now linked the two cells together.

Whatever the value of B3, it will now be displayed in Cell D3.

But wait… we want to multiply the cost by the number of items. Let’s select

the cell B3 and multiply it by C3. On the right you’ll see a list of symbols used to perform equations.

In this case the equation should look like:

=B3*C3

Once we hit enter, the correct number will be displayed. (7.50)

Let’s Try It!

Now repeat the steps for the next two or three remaining items.

Pro-Tip: Autofill for Equations

Just like we were able to have Excel perform automatic functions for

calendar dates, we can use the same function to perform the

multiplication for

Finally let’s make a grand total by adding all the cells together

into a spot for the total.

Your equation should be:

=D3+D4+D5+D6+D7+D8+D9

Always start an equation by entering the = symbol. --------------------- Add +

Subtract - Multiply *

Divide /

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But that is a lot of work! We can save some time by using the AutoSum feature. This feature

automatically combines the selected cells and adds them together placing them in a blank space nearby.

To use Autosum, first highlight the cells in the range we would like to add together (the total).

Next, (while the cells are still highlighted) move over to and click the

AutoSum symbol in the top right of the ribbon.

As you’ll now notice, we have the same sum but without the tedious

work of adding them together manually.

Basics of Formatting

Just adding information is not always enough,

performing simple formatting can make

information easier to read and use.

Bold- To add change type to bold simply

highlight one or more cells and then select the

bold option (B) in the ribbon.

Borders Often it’s useful to have visible grid borders, both in and around your cells. To add visible grids and borders to your worksheet, first select the area that you want to include.

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Starting at the upper right-hand of the sheet, click and HOLD your left mouse button and drag your mouse to the opposite corner of the area you want to select. The selected area will turn blue.

Let go of the mouse button and then right-click anywhere on the selected area. The mini

pop-up toolbar will appear. Select the drop-down arrow next to the “Borders” icon from the

menu.

Highlight the cell(s) that you would like to place a border around.

Then select the border option in the top middle section of the

home button. You should see a full list of border options.

Now we can click on the borders that we would like to add

to the spreadsheet. In this case let’s add a bottom border

to separate the categories from the information.

In this case we are only adding a single border but you can

click on multiple options to add multiple borders in a

selection.

Let’s Try It!

Now add an additional border separating the

numbers from the grand total using the

“Thick Bottom Border” like the example to

the left.

Changing Number Formats On a daily basis we use numbers to do all sorts of things, write the date, mark a percentage of a sale, or mark a dollar amount. By changing the format of an individual cell or column, we can more clearly organize and communicate the information we are trying to share.

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Thankfully switching the format of a number is extremely.

The first way is changing the format of an individual Cell. To change

the format of one cell, click the cell(s), and then select the preferred

format from the middle box in the home button labeled ‘Number’.

This is often slightly more time consuming that changing an entire row or

column. To change the formatting of a row or column, select the letter or

number of the column. Finally, select the correct format from the

number.

Now any future information that is entered in cells in column D will retain

the correct formatting. This type of formatting is usually best to do right

when you start working or when your worksheet is complete.

Printing In most cases just having a spreadsheet is not our only goal, we will often want to print it for our records or for an important meeting. If you’ve ever tried to print from Excel, however, you may know the difficulty of making sure that your printout contains the correct information and is still readable. To start printing, hit the ‘File’ button and then the ‘Print’ option.

There are three primary ways to print are:

Print Active Sheet – This choice prints the

worksheet that is currently visible in Excel

Print Entire Workbook – This choice prints all of

the worksheets in the saved workbook. This is

not the most popular options as in many cases

there is not

Print Selection – By left clicking and dragging we

can select part of our worksheet. Using this

option, we only print the selection

Let’s Try It!

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Try and highlight all the information on the sheet labeled ‘Shopping List’ and print it using the Print

Selection option.

Two other important settings are the page orientation and the setting how many pages you would like

to print on.

Page Orientation

Changing the page from portrait to landscape flips an 8 ½ x 11

page horizontally, often allowing for much more information to be

displayed on the sheet. To switch the page from landscape to

horizontal, simply click the page orientation button in the print

menu.

Pro Tip: Print Lines

You’ll also notice that after we select the print page options, tiny

dashed lines will be visible showing the page breaks we have just

established. No guessing needed!

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Keeping prints to a single Page

Sometimes it can be valuable to keep printed Excel worksheets to a

single page. Simply hit the Page Setup button on the bottom right of

the print menu to open up even more printing options

Now in the Page Setup menu we can set the

worksheet to fit to 1 page wide by 1 page wide

(or any other needed variation).

Let’s now move to our final worksheet “Rubric”

*Project Idea: Grading Rubric*

Whether grading students, candidates for an open position, or even comparing a list of new cars, it is

often helpful to create grading rubrics for information. This is quiet easy and useful in Excel! Open up

the final Excel worksheet “Rubric” to see!

Practice Assignment

Now that we’ve walked through the steps of formatting text, performing basic math functions, and page

layout features you should feel somewhat ready to start working on the rubric yourself.

In order to complete the worksheet you’ll need to

Enter in the missing pieces of information

Add appropriate borders, bold text, and change text size

Use the AutoSum function to total students’ grades

Divide a student’s grade by total possible grade

Convert End Grade to percentages

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Images from:

http://www.acuitytraining.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Excel-For-SEO-Appendix-1-5-cursor-

over-right-margin.png

http://colfinder.net/materials/Supporting_Distance_Education_Through_Policy_Development/skill/e20

00/autofill.jpg