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School of Student Essentials

Microsoft Excel Essentials: Formulas, Charts, Tables

What you'll be able to do
  • Understand workbooks, worksheets, cells and cell addresses.
  • Write formulas and use the most common functions (SUM, AVERAGE, MIN, MAX, COUNT, IF, XLOOKUP).
  • Copy formulas correctly using relative and absolute references.
  • Sort, filter and format data so it's easy to read.
  • Turn numbers into a clear chart.
Words in this course 35Open the Vocabulary Hall
01

Workbooks, sheets and cells

In simple words

Excel is a giant grid of little boxes. Each box has a name, like a seat in a theatre: column letter + row number, like B3. You put numbers and words in the boxes, and Excel can do the math for you.

Key facts
  • A file is a workbook; the tabs at the bottom are worksheets.
  • Each box is a cell, named by column letter + row number (e.g. A1, C7).
  • One worksheet can hold 1,048,576 rows by 16,384 columns (Microsoft's official limit).
  • Excel is included with Office 365 Education for eligible students with a school email (see course 13.1).
Step by step
  1. Open Excel and choose Blank workbook.
  2. Look at the tabs at the bottom. Each tab is a worksheet. Click the plus to add one.
  3. Click the box in column A, row 1. It is called cell A1.
  4. Type a word and press Enter, then type a number in the next row.
  5. Click different cells and watch the name box show their names, such as C7.
  6. Save the file with a name you will recognise.
  7. Check: you can name any cell you click.
Watch on YouTube
Microsoft Excel basics for beginnersMicrosoft Mechanics · YouTube · youtube.com

Videos by other creators on YouTube, for reference. They are not made by or affiliated with The Future Market.

LESSON 01Workbooks, sheets and cells
LESSON 01 / APP DEMO / AI VOICE00:00 / 01:00
Read the video script
[Screen: zoom into cell B3] "Column B, row 3: that's B3. Every cell has an address."
[Host] "Over a million rows on one sheet. You'll never run out of space."
Try it now

Create a workbook with two sheets named "Budget" and "Grades". Type your name in A1 of each.

ClaudeStuck? Copy a ready-made prompt for Claude

Copy this, open Claude, paste it, and Claude will walk you through the lesson step by step.

For a grown-up: Claude is for adults (18+). Copy this, paste it into Claude, and use the answer to explain the lesson to your child.

I'm learning "Microsoft Excel Essentials: Formulas, Charts, Tables" on The Future Market. Lesson 1: "Workbooks, sheets and cells".

What the lesson teaches:
- A file is a workbook; the tabs at the bottom are worksheets.
- Each box is a cell, named by column letter + row number (e.g. A1, C7).
- One worksheet can hold 1,048,576 rows by 16,384 columns (Microsoft's official limit).
- Excel is included with Office 365 Education for eligible students with a school email (see course 13.1).

The exercise I'm working on:
Create a workbook with two sheets named "Budget" and "Grades". Type your name in A1 of each.

I'm stuck. Please:
1. Explain the main idea in plain, simple words with one everyday example.
2. Walk me through the exercise one small step at a time. Ask me what I've done so far before giving the next step.
3. Don't just give me the final answer. Help me do it myself, and check my work when I share it.
I'm a parent helping my child (about 8 years old) with a lesson called "Workbooks, sheets and cells" from the course "Microsoft Excel Essentials: Formulas, Charts, Tables".

Here's what the lesson says:
Excel is a giant grid of little boxes. Each box has a name, like a seat in a theatre: column letter + row number, like B3. You put numbers and words in the boxes, and Excel can do the math for you.

The activity:
Create a workbook with two sheets named "Budget" and "Grades". Type your name in A1 of each.

Please explain this so an 8-year-old understands: short sentences, a fun everyday example, and no hard words.
Then give me 3 simple questions I can ask my child to check they understood, and a way to do the activity together, one tiny step at a time.
Open Claude
Sources
My notes
02

Your first formulas

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03

The functions everyone uses

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04

Copying formulas: relative vs absolute

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05

Sort, filter, tables and readable sheets

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06

Charts that tell a story

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++

Final project

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??

Quiz

  1. What does every formula start with?

  2. What is B2:B10?

  3. What does $A$1 mean?

  4. Formula to show "Pass" if B2 is 50 or more, else "Fail"?

  5. Which chart for change over time?

  6. How many rows can one Excel worksheet hold?

EX

Final exam

This lesson is part of full access: every course and every level for one payment.

CE

Certificate

This lesson is part of full access: every course and every level for one payment.