Family Counts: Math Lesson

Grades9, 10, 11, 12, APEconomics, History, Mathematics

What it is

In this lesson, students will analyze fertility and mortality data for various time periods from historical records to determine how they have changed, then discuss the cultural and economic factors that influenced these changes.
Students will compare the New Castle County, Delaware data to local and national data, providing their own family tree data for comparison.

Positives

By providing their own data for one of the activities, students will feel connected to the lesson.
Images of the original historical documents help the data and associated task feel authentic.

Prerequisites

As mentioned in the Procedure section, the historical documents contain language that is now inappropriate and teachers should address this with students before starting the lesson.
Students should know how to calculate averages and graph data points.
Students should be ready to support students while they fill out the information for their own families, especially students who do not know one or both of their parents as this activity may upset them.

Differentiation & Implementation

Teachers can strategically group students for the activity by pairing students who are strong in data analysis and calculation or systems thinking with those who need support in one or both of these areas.
This lesson is suggested for APUSH classes, as it aligns with the AP U.S. History framework.
This lesson can introduce the topic of population growth and its impact on resource use, global emissions, and climate change.
Students can find fertility data from another country and compare it to the national data, discussing the differences.
Social studies classes can make connections to the lack of equal rights for women in various countries around the world and how that affects their access to education, access to financial resources, or other social justice issues.

There is no climate science to review in this resource.

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Grades: 9, 10, 11, 12, AP
Subjects: Economics, History, Mathematics
Other types: Data, Graphs, and Maps, Assessments, Activity - Classroom, Worksheets
Format: PDF
Language: English
Location: North America > United States > Delaware
Provider: Population Education
Authors: Population Education
Published: May 24, 2024
Last updated: July 16, 2026
: Reviewed by our climate scientists How we review

Standards alignment · D2.Eco.10.9-12 + 11 more

College, Career, and Civic Life (C3) Standards

D2.Eco.10.9-12Use current data to explain the influence of changes in spending, production, and the money supply on various economic conditions.
D2.Eco.8.9-12Describe the possible consequences, both intended and unintended, of government policies to improve market outcomes.
D2.His.1.9-12Evaluate how historical events and developments were shaped by unique circumstances of time and place as well as broader historical contexts.
D2.His.12.9-12Use questions generated about multiple historical sources to pursue further inquiry and investigate additional sources.
D2.His.14.9-12Analyze multiple and complex causes and effects of events in the past.
D2.His.15.9-12Distinguish between long-term causes and triggering events in developing a historical argument.
D2.His.16.9-12Integrate evidence from multiple relevant historical sources and interpretations into a reasoned argument about the past.
D2.His.2.9-12Analyze change and continuity in historical eras.

Common Core Math Standards (CCSS.MATH)

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSN.Q.A.1Use units as a way to understand problems and to guide the solution of multi-step problems; choose and interpret units consistently in formulas; choose and interpret the scale and the origin in graphs and data displays.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.A.1Represent data with plots on the real number line (dot plots, histograms, and box plots).
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.ID.C.9Distinguish between correlation and causation.
CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.HSS.IC.B.6Evaluate reports based on data.