Reapportionment

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Reapportionment

Activity Description

Students will learn about the decennial census and its impact on their communities. Using past data, students will predict population changes from the 2010 Census to 2020. Then students will reallocate seats in the U.S. House of Representatives based on the predicted changes.

Suggested Grade Level

9-12

Approximate Time Required

35 minutes

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to:

Integrate information from diverse sources into a coherent understanding of an idea.
Integrate quantitative analysis with qualitative analysis in print or digital text.

Materials Required

Printed student worksheets
A smartboard or projector with internet access
A map of congressional districts in your state
2010 Census: The U.S. Census and the Amazing Apportionment Machine video
- If technology is unavailable in the classroom, teachers may omit the video.
Student laptops or tablets to access My Congressional District
- If students do not have access to laptops or tablets, teachers could project the webpage onto the front board for all students to view and could then lead the activity as a class.
- Teachers could also record the total population data for five districts according to instructions in the activity ahead of time and write it on the board for students to reference.