Your child can draw the IB Economics diagram. They set up the axes and shift the right curve. But in an explain question, the answer stops once the diagram is done. One thing worth checking is whether it ever says what the diagram means.
What this article covers
- A diagram question wants an explanation, not just a drawing.
- A correct diagram shows the change. The explaining says what that change means in the question.
- The explaining names the change the diagram shows and the effect it has, tied to the question.
- There is a short task at the end you can try at home this week.
Where IB Economics diagram answers stop short
A child who stalls here can draw the diagram well. They set up the axes and shift the right curve. One place to check is what comes after the drawing. If the answer stops once the diagram is done, the explaining is missing. A strong answer names what has changed, reads the effect the diagram shows, and says what it means for the question. The diagram is one part of that, not the whole of it.
Draw it, then explain it
A good diagram shows what changed. The explaining is where you say what that change means for the question. Here is the short way from one to the other.
A subsidy shifts supply right. Price falls, quantity rises. The explaining is what that means.
Draw it right
Get the axes, the curves and the shift the right way round first.
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Read the move
Point at what changed. Which line moved, and what it does to the values the question is about.
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Say the effect
Write what that change means for the question, in plain words.
A diagram on its own shows the change. The explaining is where you say what it means for the question.
How we teach the explaining
We get the child to draw the diagram first, then stop and ask one question: so what does this change mean for the question? Then they point at what moved, and write two sentences on the effect, tied to the question. We keep the explaining short and plain. It is a Greenhill way of turning a drawing into an answer that lands.
Greenhill tutor
Kevin, Economics tutor
Kevin holds an MSc in Financial Economics from the University of Oxford and teaches Economics with Greenhill, including at IB level.
Answers stopping at the diagram?
Tell us where your child’s diagram answers break down. A tutor can look at one and help spot where the explaining stops.
Ask about a tutorOne diagram, explained
The example and the answers here are made up to show the point. They are not from a child’s own work.
The question
A government gives bus companies a subsidy. Using a diagram, explain the effect on the bus travel market.
Diagram, then effect
A diagram answer draws the market, shifts supply to the right, and marks the new price and quantity. That shows the change. The explaining is the next part. The subsidy lowers firms’ costs, so supply shifts right. The equilibrium price falls and the quantity of bus journeys rises. That is what the diagram shows. Saying what the shift means, in plain words tied to the question, is what turns a drawing into an answer. Any wider effect, like what happens to road traffic, would need separate evidence.
Try this at home this week
This takes about eight minutes. It shows you whether your child explains the diagram or stops at the drawing.
What you need. Paper, a pen, and one diagram your child has drawn, or one from a past paper.
The task. Ask your child to look at their diagram and add two sentences: what moved, and what that change means for the question. No new diagram, just the explaining.
- Look at the diagram and find the change. Which line moved?
- Mark what the diagram shows before and after the change.
- Write one sentence on what moved and why.
- Write one sentence on what that change means for the question.
- Check the second sentence says an effect, not just names the parts of the diagram.
What to watch. Watch whether your child can say what the diagram means, or only names the parts. If they stop at the drawing, that is the part to practise.
What it cannot tell you. This short task does not cover using supplied data to reach a conclusion, the maths of the diagram, or the full mark scheme. It checks the explaining step only.
Where a tutor takes it next. That is where a tutor picks it up: the explaining first, then the full shape of a strong diagram answer.
This clip shows a maths lesson recorded in Pencil Spaces, the online classroom used by Greenhill Academics.
Our IB Economics tutors
Kevin holds an MSc in Financial Economics from the University of Oxford and teaches Economics with Greenhill, including at IB level.
Theo is studying Economic History at the London School of Economics, on track for a First, and teaches IB Economics and Business Management with Greenhill.
Questions parents ask us
Why does my child draw the diagram but not explain it?
Drawing the diagram is only part of an IB Economics answer. The diagram shows the change. The explaining is where you say what that change means for the question. That explaining step is the part to practise.
What does explain the diagram actually mean?
Say what moved and why, then what that change means for the question. One clear line on the effect, not just naming the parts of the diagram.
Is this the same as using data to reach a conclusion?
No. This article focuses on explaining an economic diagram. Using supplied figures to reach a supported conclusion is a different skill, even though both can appear in exam work. The habit of taking a point all the way to its effect is the same one behind building a chain of analysis.
Do you tutor IB Economics online?
Yes. We tutor IB Economics online for UK and international families, HL and SL. It is the same explaining skill we work on in writing that explains, not just states in other subjects. Tell us where your child gets stuck, and we can talk through the help they need.
How quickly can this improve?
It depends on the child. The explaining step is short, but doing it well on real diagrams takes practice. A tutor can show you what that looks like.
Want a tutor to work on IB Economics with your child?
Tell us where your child gets stuck, and we can talk through the help they need.
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