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http://esri.com/geoinquiriesModule3:Lesson2-TeacherMaterials

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PatternsofaGrowingPopulation - Instructor Guide

Lessonoverview

StudentswillexploretheroleoftheUnitedStatesCensus.Usingdataobtainedinthe2000Census,theywillexaminepopulationpatternsacrosstheUnitedStates.Studentswillprofiletheirstateandexaminedataonpopulation,populationdensity,andotherinterestingstatisticsonmobilityandInternetaccess.TheywilluseGIStoexamineandinteractwithanumberofgraduatedcolormapsandfilterdatatoanswerrelevantquestions.

EstimatedtimeApproximately60minutes

MaterialsThestudentactivitycanbefoundathttp://esri.com/geoinquiries.

ClickontheThinkingSpatiallyUsingGISlinkandchooseModule3,Lesson2.

ObjectivesAftercompletingthelesson,astudentisabletodothefollowing:

• ExplainpopulationpatternsacrosstheUnitedStates• Profiletheinformationfortheirstate• Interpretthematicmapstoanswerquestionsanddrawconclusions• Workwithtabulardata• Filterdatatofindanswersandmakedecisions

GISToolsandFunctions• Openamapfile• Zoomtodesiredsectionofthemap• Identifyafeatureonamap

Functions• Turnlayersonandoff• Changemapstyle(legend)• Filterattributedata• Labelfeatures• Sortattributes



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NationalGeographyStandards

Teachingthelesson

Introducingthelesson

Beginthislessonbyreviewingordiscussingthefollowingconcepts.

• Thedifferencebetweentotalpopulationandpopulationdensity• Spatialpatterns:cluster,random,anduniform• HowtheU.S.CensuscanhelpusstudythehistoryoftheUnitedStates• Theuseofstatisticsingeographyandmapping• Howcensusdataissimplifiedsothatitcanbestudiedmoreeasily• TheuniquecharacteristicsofeachregionoftheUnitedStates• Thematicmappingusinggraduatedcolormaps• Theindividualcharacteristicsofyourstateandthepeoplewholivethere

StudentactivityWerecommendthatyoucompletethislessonyourselfbeforecompletingitwithstudents.Thiswillallowyoutomodifytheactivitytoaccommodatethespecificneedsofyourstudents.



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TeacherNotes• Explainthelessontothestudents,andmakesuretheyknowwheretoanswerthe

questions.• Foryoungergrades,youcanconducttheGISactivityasateacher-ledactivityandhave

studentsfollowalong.YoucanleadstudentsthroughtheGISstepsandaskthemtheassociatedquestionsasaclass.

• Studentswilleachneedaprintedcopyoftheactivitysotheycananswerquestionsthroughout.

• Theycanmarktheiranswersdirectlyontheactivitysheet.Alternatively,youcanprovideaseparateanswersheet.

• Ideally,studentswillhaveaccesstotheirowncomputers.However,studentscancompletethelessoninsmallgroups.

• Somequestionsdorequireclassroomand/orgroupinteraction.Youcandecideonthebestwaytohandlethesequestions.

• WerecommendthatstudentssavetheirworkastheyprogressthroughtheGISactivity.StudentscanuseeithertheSavecommand(tosavetheirchangestotheoriginalmap)ortheSaveAscommand(tosavetheirchangestoanewmap).Pleaseexplaintostudentswhereandhowtheyshouldsavetheirwork.

• Eachstudentwillcompleteaworksheetwhilegoingthroughtheactivity.• Toexplainpopulationdensity,havethestudentscalculatethedensityofthestudentsin

yourclassroom(numberofstudents/areaofclassroom=density).

Thefollowingarethingstolookforwhilethestudentsareworkingonthissetofactivities:

• Arestudentsthinkingabouttheunderlyinggeographicconceptsastheyworkthroughthesteps(suchasthepopulationoftheircommunityandhowpopulationaffectsdecisionmaking)?

• Arestudentsansweringthequestionsastheyworkthroughthesteps?• Arestudentsexperiencinganydifficultieswiththebuttons,tools,andmouseclicking,

etc.?

Concludingthelesson• EngagestudentsinadiscussionabouttheUnitedStatesanditspopulation.Forexample,

youcandiscussissuessuchashowfastthepopulationisgrowing,wherepeopleareliving,andhowpopulationpatternsmightchangeinthefuture.

• HavestudentsdoInternetresearchtolearnmoreaboutthefuturegrowthoftheUnitedStatesand/orworldpopulationandtolearnaboutthenextU.S.Census.

• Askstudentswhattheyknowaboutthepopulationsinothercountries.• Discussthevalueofaccuratelycountingpeople.Forexample,howwouldthisaffectthe

locationofschoolsandconstructionofnewhomes?• Talkabouthowyourcommunitycompareswiththestateandthecountryintermsof

populationandothercharacteristics.Doestheircommunityrepresentthestateasawhole?



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• Hasthisactivityraisedanyquestionsthattheywouldliketoexplorefurther?HowcanGIShelpthemtolearnaboutpeopleandplaces?

• HowcanGIShelpthemorganizeinformationandfindanswerstoquestions?

Extendingthelesson• Downloada2000Censusformandhaveeachstudentcompletetheform(shortorlong

form).Doaminicensusoftheclassroom.• ExamineotherkindsofquestionsthatcouldbeaskedontheU.S.Census.• ChooseonestatefromeachregionoftheUnitedStatestoprofile,andseehowthose

statescomparetoyours.• Discusspopulationpatternsinthecountryandhowtheyrelatetohistory,landforms,

climate,etc.

References• www.census.gov• http://people.howstuffworks.com/census1.htm• http://www.ourtownamerica.com/sponsor/movingstats.php



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Studentactivityanswerkey

Answersappearinblue.

Module3,Lesson2Patternsofagrowingpopulation

! Q1:Whatisthenameofyourstate?Writeitonyour“Patternsofagrowingpopulation”worksheet.

Task1:Openthemap

Task2:EnlargetheArcGISOnlinewindow

Task3:Workwithlayers

! Q2:Lookatyourmapandfindthedarkestcoloredstates.Fromthosestates,selectthreethateachhavepopulationsofmorethantenmillionpeople.Answersmayincludethefollowing:

a. Californiab. Texasc. Floridad. NewYorke. Pennsylvaniaf. Ohiog. Illinois

! Q3:Lookatthelocationofallthestatesthatfallinthehighestpopulationcategory.Whatdotheyhaveincommon?(Circlethecorrectanswer.)

a. Theyareallnexttooneanother.b. TheyallstartwiththeletterC.c. Theyallhavesomeoftheirborderalongwater.d. Theyareallinthemiddleofthecountry.



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! Q4:Listthreeofthestatesthathavefewerthanonemillionpeople(thelightestcolor).Answersmayincludethefollowing:

a. Montanab. NorthDakotac. SouthDakotad. Wyominge. Vermontf. Delawareg. Alaska

! Q5:Whatpatterndothesestatesshow?a. Theyaremostlyclusteredtogether.b. Theyarerandomlyspreadapart.c. Theyareevenlydistributedacrossthecountry.

! Q6:Whichstatehasthehighestpopulation(theoneatthetopofthelist)?California

! Q7:Scrollbacktoseethestatenames.Whichstatehasthelowestpopulation(theoneatthetopofthelist)?Wyoming

! Q8:Writethepopulationofyourstateintheappropriatelocationonyourworksheet

Task4:Morepeople,lessspace

! Q9:Whatisthenameofthestatethathasthelowestpopulationdensity?(Hint:Scrollthetabletothelefttoseethestatename.)State:Alaska

! Q10:Canyouthinkoftworeasonswhythisstatehasthelowestpopulationdensity?Answersmayincludethefollowing:

a. Theweatheriscold.b. Itisveryfarfromthecontiguousstates(statesthatareconnected).c. Theland,orterrain,isrugged.d. ThetypesofindustriesinAlaskaaremorelimitedthaninmanyotherstates.e. Theactualareaofthestateisquitelarge,sopeoplecanspreadoutmore.

! Q12:Canyouthinkoftworeasonswhythisstatehasthehighestpopulationdensity?Answersmayincludethefollowing:

a. Itisasmallstate,sothereisnotalotofspaceforpeople.b. Therearelotsofjobsnearby(e.g.,NewYorkCity).c. Theweatherismoderate.d. Peoplehaveaccesstotransportation.e. Itisnearmajorcities.



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! Q13:Lookatyourmapandnoticehowpopulationdensityisspreadacrossthestates.Describeanypatternsyousee.Usewordssuchas“locatedtogether”(orclustered),“withoutanypattern”(orrandom),and“lookingthesameastheothers”(oruniform).Answer:Studentscananswerthiscreatively.Appropriatenesswillvarydependingongradelevel.Thefollowingaresomepointsforstudentstoconsider:• OtherthanCalifornia,Washington,andFlorida,thestateswithhigherdensity

areclusteredintheNortheast.• Thestateswithmid-densityareessentiallyclusteredinthemiddleofthe

country.

! Q14:Whatwasthepopulationdensity(Pop_Dens)ofyourstateatthe2000Census?Writeitonyourworksheet.

Task5:Movingaroundthecountry

! Q15:Chooseanyfivestatesfromthoseselectedandwritetheirnameshere:Answersmayincludethefollowing:

a. NorthDakotab. Wisconsinc. Minnesotad. Iowae. Pennsylvaniaf. Ohiog. WestVirginiah. Kentuckyi. Alabamaj. Mississippik. Louisianal. Michigan

! Q16:Inwhichpartofthecountryaremostofthesestateslocated?a. Eastb. West

! Q17:Discusswithyourclassmateswhyyouthinkpeoplewanttoremainlivinginthesestates.Answer:Thisisjustaconversationthestudentsshouldhaveinordertoanswerthefollowingquestion.



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! Q18:Listtworeasonswhypeoplewouldnotmoveawayfromthestatetheywerebornin.Answer:Thefollowinganswers,aswellasanyothervalidreasons,areacceptable.

a. Theirfamilylivesthere.b. Theyhavegoodjobs.c. Theyhaveahouse.d. Theycannotaffordtomove.e. Theylikewheretheylive.f. Theyliketheweather.g. Theirfriendslivethere.h. Theyhaveneverleftthestate.

! Q19:Askyourclassmatesiftheywereborninthestatetheylivein.Howmanysaidyes?Howmanysaidno?Answerswillvary.

! Q20:Whatisthepercentofpeoplelivinginthestatethatwerebornthere?Writethisonyourworksheet.Answerswillvary

! Q21:Didyounoticeasignificantchangeinthemap?(Hint:TurnoffandontheBorninAnotherStatelayertotakeanotherlook.)

a. Yesb. No

! Q22:Describethechangeinpatternthatyounoticed.ThedarkercolorsmovedtotheWestofthecountry,showingthatpeopleinthewesthavetypicallymovedtherefromotherstates.

! Q23:Lookatthemap.Whichstateshavethehighestnumberofpeoplewhowereborninanotherstate(thedarkestcolor)?Writetwoofthemhere.Answersmayincludethefollowing:

a. Wyomingb. NewHampshirec. Alaskad. Nevadae. Arizona



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! Q24Whatdoyouthinkmakesthesestatessopopular?Answersmayincludethefollowing:

• Nicerweather(notinallcases)• Betterjobopportunities• Lowercostofliving/lessexpensivehousing• Betterlifestyle• Attendcollege/university

! Q25:Lookatthemap.Whichstateshavethelowestnumberofpeoplewhowereborninanotherstate(thelightestcolor)?Listthreeofthemhere:Answersmayincludethefollowing:

a. Massachusettsb. NewYorkc. Pennsylvaniad. Illinoise. Louisianaf. Michigan

! Q26:Whydoyouthinksofewpeoplefromotherstatesmovethere?Answersmayincludethefollowing:

a. Highcostoflivingb. Verylargecitiesc. Morepollutiond. Colderweather(notinallcases)e. Alotofpeopleliveincities(urbanareas)

! Q27:Whatisthepercentofpeoplelivinginyourstatewhowereborninanotherstate?Writethisonyourworksheet.

Task6:SurfingtheInternet.

Eachyear,theU.S.CensusperformsasurveycalledtheAmericanCommunitySurvey.ThesurveycollectsinterestingfactsonasmallpercentageoftheU.S.populationandpublishesthemontheWeb.Oneofthepiecesofdatathesurveyexaminesispeople’saccesstotheInternet.TheU.S.CensuscollectsthisinformationforeachhouseholdintheUnitedStates.



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! Q28:Lookatyourmap.Listthreeofthestateswheremorethan60percentofhouseholdshaveaccesstotheInternet.(Thesewillbethestatesinthedarkestcolor.)Answersmayincludethefollowing:

a. Alaskab. Washingtonc. Minnesotad. Oregone. NewHampshiref. Connecticutg. NewJerseyh. Utahi. Coloradoj. Virginia

! Q29:Lookatyourmap.Whatpatterndoyounoticeamongthestateswheremorethan60percentofthepopulationhasInternetaccess?(Circleallthatapply.)

a. Thereisarandompattern—thesestatesarespreadalloverthecountry.b. Thereisaclusterpattern—thestatesaregroupedtogetherincertainareas.c. Thereisauniformpattern—thestatesarespacedevenlyapart.Answer:aorb—itwilldependonthestudent’sspatialperspective.

! Q30:WhichthreestateshavethelowestpercentofhouseholdswithaccesstotheInternet?Youmighthavetoscrollbacktothelefttoseethenamesofthestates.

a. Mississippib. Arkansasc. Louisiana

! Q31:Inwhichregionofthecountryarethesestateslocated?a. Northb. Southc. Eastd. West

! Q32:WhichthreestateshavethehighestpercentofhouseholdswithaccesstotheInternet?

a. Alaskab. NewHampshirec. Colorado



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! Q33:Overall,whichpartofthecountryappearstohavethemostaccesstotheInternet?

a. Northb. Southc. Eastd. West

! Q34:WhatisthepercentofInternetaccessforhouseholdsinyourstate?Writethisnumberonyourworksheet.

Task7:SaveyourworkandexitArcGISOnline.



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PatternsofaGrowingPopulation

Worksheet

Nameofyourstate:________________________________________

Topic YourState

Populationin2000 Answerwillvary

Populationdensity Answerwillvary

Borninstate Answerwillvary

Borninanotherstate Answerwillvary

Internetaccess Answerwillvary

Oneyouhavecompletedthistable,writeabriefparagraphthatdescribesthepopulationcharacteristicsofyourstate.Usetheinformationyouhaveobtainedduringthisactivity.

Answerswillvary