Modifying a worksheet

Hello students, welcome to Kwickprep. You made a marks sheet, and then a new student joins in the middle of the list. Do you type everything again? No. Today we learn to modify a worksheet, from rows and columns to the sheet itself.

Modifying a worksheet means changing it after the data is typed. It changes the layout without retyping the data. You can insert or delete rows, columns and cells. You can change column width and row height. You can also move, copy, delete, colour or hide whole sheets.

Rows have numbers on the left, and columns have letters at the top. To add a row, right-click a row number and choose Insert. The new row appears above the row you clicked. To add a column, right-click a column letter and choose Insert. The new column appears to the left of the column you clicked.

Deleting works in a similar way. Select the row numbers or column letters you want to remove. Right-click and choose Delete, and the rows below move up. You can also use Home, then Delete, then Delete Sheet Rows. Be careful, because the Delete key on the keyboard only clears the contents and leaves the empty row.

You can also insert or delete a single cell. Right-click a cell and choose Insert, then shift the cells right or down. Choose Delete, and shift the cells left or up to fill the gap. Both boxes also let you insert or delete the whole row or whole column.

Pause and predict. A class list has marks in rows two to ten. You insert a new row at row five. Where does the data that was in row five go? It moves down to row six, and the list now ends at row eleven.

When text does not fit, change the size. Drag the border between two column letters or row numbers. Double-click the border to AutoFit, which fits the longest entry. For an exact size, use Home, then Format, then Column Width or Row Height. If a number shows hash signs, the column is too narrow, so widen it. The default column width is 8.43 characters.

Now let us change whole sheets. Drag a sheet tab left or right to move it. Hold Ctrl while dragging to make a copy, which gets the same name with a number two in brackets. Right-click the tab and choose Move or Copy for more control. In that box, tick Create a copy, and you can even send it to another open workbook.

Deleting a sheet needs extra care. Right-click the tab and choose Delete. If the sheet has data, Excel shows a warning first. Undo, which is Ctrl+Z, cannot bring a deleted sheet back. So save a backup copy of the file before deleting.

Three more changes are on the tab's right-click menu. Tab Color gives a tab a colour, for example green for all sales months. Hide removes a sheet from view without deleting it. Unhide shows a list of hidden sheets, so you can bring one back. At least one sheet must always stay visible.

Let us revise what we learned today. Insert adds rows above and columns to the left. Right-click Delete removes a row, but the Delete key only clears it. Double-click a border to AutoFit the size. Ctrl+drag a tab to copy a sheet. And remember, a deleted sheet cannot be brought back with undo.