Read or listen
Optional synthetic read-aloud uses your browser’s speech service, not an analyst recording. Availability and voice depend on your device. All four chapters are written below; there is no recorded video in this sample.
Read-aloud is unavailable here. Read the complete chapters below.
Chapter 01
Choose and label your data
Before drawing a line, record exactly what the chart represents: asset pair, venue, instrument type, timeframe and timezone. BTC/USD spot and a BTC perpetual contract are not interchangeable sources. Their prices and candles can differ. For any actual platform, check its current documentation for candle boundaries, adjusted data and order-trigger conventions.
Use a repeatable label such as “instrument / venue / spot / daily / UTC / captured at [date and time]”. The diagram below instead uses invented SAMPLE/USD closing prices, numbered observations and no exchange. It cannot be mistaken for a current market signal or a real performance record.
Security belongs in the workspace too. A chart exercise needs no wallet connection, exchange API secret or seed phrase. Remove balances and account identifiers from screenshots before sharing them. Record the public data source, not your credentials.
Try it yourself
Write a complete source label for a chart you can already access. If a field is unknown, record “unknown” rather than guessing.
Compare with the worked answer
A complete label names the pair, venue/source, instrument type, candle interval, timezone and capture time. For this module: SAMPLE/USD, invented data, closing-price series, 12 numbered observations, no real calendar or venue.
Chapter 02
Keep your timeframe consistent
A candle summarises the open, high, low and close within an interval; a line chart can show only closes. A closing-price line does not reveal the sequence of trades within an interval or the size of intraperiod wicks. Do not infer a stop fill from a closing-only chart.
Start with a broad context view, then examine a more detailed timeframe. A short-term rally may sit inside a longer-term decline. Write the timeframe beside every trend description. A candle that has not closed can still change, and daily boundaries may differ by data source or timezone.
For a paper exercise, fix the source and interval before revealing later data. If you change the timeframe whenever the chart contradicts your idea, the exercise becomes difficult to evaluate. Save the original view and state why a second timeframe is useful.
Try it yourself
Imagine the daily swings are falling but the four-hour swings are rising. Write a sentence that describes both without claiming a reversal is certain.
Compare with the worked answer
“The four-hour chart shows a recovery within a declining daily swing sequence. More evidence is needed before describing a daily reversal.” The timeframes describe different intervals; neither guarantees the next move.
Chapter 03
Compare price distance and percentage change
On a linear price axis, equal vertical distances represent equal absolute price differences. On a logarithmic axis, equal distances represent equal proportional changes. A move from $50 to $100 and a move from $100 to $200 are both +100%, but their absolute changes are $50 and $100.
Switch the chart between linear and logarithmic scale. The observations stay identical; only their vertical spacing changes. A trendline can therefore have a different slope or intersection under a different scale. Record the scale before making comparisons, especially across a large price range.
Neither scale makes a pattern more likely to work. This comparison uses only positive invented prices, because the ordinary logarithm used here is not defined for zero or negative prices. The table gives the same numbers independently of the chart so the lesson does not rely on colour or visual interpretation alone.
Try the same data on two scales
The chart changes. The prices do not.
Teaching illustration only. No live market data, dates, trade entries or performance claims.
Read the underlying values
| Observation | Close (USD) |
|---|---|
| 1 | 50 |
| 2 | 65 |
| 3 | 60 |
| 4 | 82 |
| 5 | 75 |
| 6 | 100 |
| 7 | 92 |
| 8 | 125 |
| 9 | 112 |
| 10 | 155 |
| 11 | 145 |
| 12 | 200 |
Try it yourself
Calculate the percentage changes from $50 to $100 and from $100 to $200. Which axis gives those two moves equal vertical distances?
Compare with the worked answer
Both are +100%: (100 − 50) / 50 and (200 − 100) / 100. A logarithmic axis gives equal distances to equal proportional changes. Linear distances differ because the absolute gains differ.
Chapter 04
Save a workspace you can review
Keep one uncluttered template: source label, selected timeframe, scale and a few relevant annotations. Mark what was observed separately from what is conditional. A line becomes a useful teaching annotation when another reader can understand why it was drawn.
Save a before view and write the decision rule before revealing more candles. Keep unsuccessful examples. Moving a level after seeing the result and presenting it as the original analysis introduces hindsight bias. A good-looking screenshot is not a backtest.
Your final deliverable for this module is a labelled chart plus a short explanation—not a buy or sell instruction. Use the downloadable workbook and five-question check to review your understanding. A sample-module pass is a learning result only and does not grant accreditation, paid course access or a new VIP entitlement.
Try it yourself
Complete the source label, scale comparison and observation-versus-condition sections of the workbook. Give one reason your chart cannot establish a profitable strategy.
Compare with the worked answer
For example: “The chart contains selected historical or invented observations and no test of execution, costs or future performance.” A complete workspace records source, timeframe, scale, capture time, annotations and uncertainty.
Module knowledge check
Put the workspace rules to work.
Five questions. Aim for 4/5, review the explanations and retry as needed. This check stays on this page; it does not affect your free Academy progress or VIP invitation.
Your finished work
A labelled chart, the two percentage calculations, an observation and a conditional statement. Use the workbook’s self-review rubric to check completeness. No instructor review or certificate is included in this free sample.
For reference on chart types and intervals, read CME’s technical-analysis introduction. It is an independent educational source, not an endorsement of Crypto Kings.
Educational information only, not personalised financial advice. No pattern, assessment or paper exercise guarantees future performance. Trading can result in substantial losses.
Continue the free foundations