The bar chart compares the proportion of Australian children across three age categories (5-8, 9-11, and 12-16 years old) who engaged in four different free-time pursuits in 2012.
Overall, watching television was the most prevalent activity among the two younger cohorts, whereas riding bikes was the most popular pastime for the oldest age group. Notably, involvement in playing computer games diminished with age, while interest in reading remained comparatively steady across all demographics.
Regarding television, nearly 95% of children aged 5-8 watched TV, making it the highest figure in the chart. For the 9-11 and 12-16 age brackets, the participation rate was slightly lower but remained substantial, standing at exactly 80% for both. In contrast, computer games exhibited a clear downward trend across age groups, falling from 60% among 5-8-year-olds to around 57% for 9-11-year-olds, before dropping sharply to 40% for those aged 12-16.
Conversely, bike riding displayed the opposite trajectory, rising from approximately 67% in the youngest group to roughly 61% in the middle group, before peaking at just over 80% among 12-16-year-olds. Meanwhile, reading figures showed minimal variation, holding stable at around 65% for 5-8-year-olds and 70% for both older age brackets.