Students will examine maps to explore changes in population density in the United States during three decades: 1920–1930 (Post-Progressive Era), 1930–1940 (Great Depression), and 1940–1950 (World War II). They will then determine what happened during each decade that likely influenced geographic mobility. Students will also examine a map of more recent population data (for 2000–2010) to understand trends in population movement.

To introduce demographic characteristics to students, teachers will help them create a population pyramid. Then, students will use an online tool called QuickFacts to find census data on demographic characteristics for a county in 2017. They will compare it to older data from the same county to find changes and trends over time. They will then use QuickFacts to examine data about their school’s county. Students will use this information to help them understand how business owners and community leaders use data on demographic characteristics to make decisions.

Students will create and compare dot and box plots that show the percentages of single-mother and single-father households in different regions of the United States.

Students will use U.S. Census Bureau data to learn how population pyramids describe population structures and to calculate age range population percentages for a selected state that will help them create a population pyramid.

Students will collect, organize, and compare data about the number of girls and the number of boys in their classroom who play sports, take lessons, and participate in clubs. Then students will compare these classroom data with U.S. Census Bureau data for girls and boys across the United States. Teachers may choose to adapt this activity for different data if other categories are more applicable to their students.

The teacher will facilitate a class discussion for students to share their opinions about young adulthood before they start the activity. After some teacher modeling, students will read, annotate, and answer questions about a technical document—including tables and graphs—to gather evidence to support conversations with their classmates about young adulthood. Then, students will write a paragraph about how their generation defines young adulthood.

Students will analyze census data and graphs that demonstrate how certain aspects of the lives of African-Americans have changed since civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech in 1963. Students will select a fact from these data, facts from other sources, and a historical photograph to include on a poster about King.

Students will examine data on the number of immigrants in the United States, to create bar graphs and line graphs with appropriate scales. Students will then compare and analyze their graphs to draw conclusions about the data.

Students will examine population density maps of the United States during the 1800s. They will learn about the Louisiana Purchase in 1803 to make and evaluate predictions about the changes in population density that resulted from this event, identifying shifts in boundaries and in areas of population density, and drawing conclusions. Students will then write a paragraph summarizing the impact of the Louisiana Purchase on the United States.

Students will use tables and visualizations of data about geographic mobility to explore rates and patterns of migration within, and immigration to, the United States. Using Census Bureau data tools, students will learn about past reasons for migration and immigration and understand the internal and external stresses of fluctuations in population.

Students will analyze and compare census data on the earnings of people with different college majors. Then they will write their own word problems and draw conclusions about the data.

Students will count items in their classroom, record this information in a data table, and analyze and understand uses for such data.

After looking at census data, students will determine the birth years of children who were aged 8 through 11 in 2017. Then they will use their data to create a line graph, with an appropriate scale and axes labels, to compare and contrast the estimated number of births in their state and in another state during each year.

Students will examine data from the 1990–2010 censuses — and U.S. Census Bureau projections for 2010–2020 — on population changes in the U.S. island territories to make observations about the populations’ demographics and to make inferences about the purpose of such data.

Students will examine tables of data from the 1820 Census to understand the implications of the Missouri Compromise, specifically in Maine and Missouri.

The purpose of this activity is to introduce students to the Missouri Compromise and the issues associated with the expansion of slavery in the Antebellum period of United States history. Students will begin the activity by creating a map that represents the Missouri Compromise’s impact on the United States. This map will serve as a backdrop for the activity while introducing students to political and cultural sectionalism (northern and southern states and the issue of slavery) in the early 1800s. After students complete the map, they will answer several questions using it. Students will also be prompted to examine aggregated data from the 1820 Census and a map titled “Mapping Slavery in the Nineteenth Century” to make comparisons and draw conclusions about slavery, specifically in Missouri.

Students will learn why families are important social institutions and how family structures, household sizes, and living arrangements have changed substantially since the 1970s. In part 1, students will work in groups of three to four to analyze census data so that they may understand these changes. In part 2, students will watch a clip from the show “Modern Family” and compare their observations with census data.

Students will analyze and interpret American Community Survey (ACS) data on housing characteristics in the United States, comparing these data with those they collect from their classmates. Students also will determine what their dream home would look like and will use flat, two-dimensional shapes to construct it.

This activity serves as an introduction to a narrative writing assignment. To provide context for this activity, teachers will give students an overview of the Census Bureau. Then, students will complete a Quickwrite about their name and its history. After that, students will examine and answer questions about census data on popular last names, listen to a story about names, and complete a Quickwrite about that story. To further prepare for their narrative writing assignment about names (which is not part of this activity), students will jot down their thoughts in a graphic organizer.

In this activity, students will look at historical images to learn about three types of Native American dwellings — teepees, pueblo adobe structures, and hogans. Students will make observations about the types of dwellings in the images. Then students will discuss their observations as a class.