Smoothing a time series with simple moving averages

What this note covers

1. What smoothing is and why you do it
2. Odd-point moving averages: the mechanics
3. Even-point moving averages and why they need centring
4. Centring a four-point moving average: worked example
5. Choosing the number of points
6. Doing it in a spreadsheet
7. Plotting and interpreting the smoothed series
8. How this is examined in the WACE ATAR course examination

8 sections · 12 key terms & formulas · 6 common mistakes