Resource Overview
U.S. population takes center stage in this downloadable packet of classroom lessons, 330+ Million in the USA, that includes 13 lesson plans, 6 readings, and 6 infographics. Today’s middle and high school students (Gen Z) will need to examine where we’ve come from in order to assume their future roles as innovators and civic leaders.
Included teaching materials will enable your students to examine past and present trends around the United States’ population growth and settlement patterns, Congressional representation, family size, education, health, transportation, immigration, gender roles, and environmental impact and policies. Many of these lessons include rich data sets and primary sources from the past 250 years.
Download the full packet using the green Download button above. Or, individual components of 330+ Million in the USA are available for free download below.
A Teacher’s Guide to 330+ Million in the USA: Download the Teacher’s Guide now for a helpful overview of the packet components along with insights into the creation and purpose of the materials.
Features of This Resource
- Great lessons for U.S. History, APUSH, and Government
- Opportunities for students to explore and analyze primary sources
- Explore digital tools for several lessons in this collection for virtual learning or tech integration
Lesson Plans and Readings
Download the following teaching materials now:
Lesson Plans
American HerStory
Students examine current and historic U.S. gender roles through two short mental exercises and research.
Connecting the Dots
Students create a population density map of U.S. population over time, from 1800 to today.
Family Counts
Students examine historic census data to investigate U.S. family size over time.
Good Old Days?
Acting as presidents from various points in history, students compare U.S. demographic and environmental statistics.
Let’s Go
Students use Google Maps to strategize urban transit and determine the costs/benefits travel choices.
Looking to the Future
Students write predictions on the state of a U.S. environmental, social, or demographic topic 50 years from now.
Making it in America
Students investigate U.S. wealth distribution and analyze historic documents related to the American Dream.
Mysteries of the U.S. Pyramids
Students construct and interpret population pyramids for the U.S. at 1880, 1920, 1960, 2000, 2025, and 2050.
Nation of Immigrants
Students listen to immigrant interviews and analyze a text about immigration history in the U.S.
Our Shared Environmental History
Students create a timeline of events in U.S. environmental history and write an Earth Day op-ed.
The People’s House
Students debate increasing the number of members in the U.S. House, then gerrymander simulated districts.
State of Our Union: Deciphering the Data
Students investigate a provided set of graphs on current economic, environmental, and health trends in the USA.
USA Population Circle
Fun large-group simulation of U.S. population growth since the first census in 1790.
Readings
America Eats
Survey of U.S. food trends: where it's from, how it’s prepared, and who has access.
America Learns
Journey through the history of schooling in the U.S. from the early 1800s to today.
America Moves
Trace the history of U.S. transportation from horsedrawn carriages to our present car culture.
America Pairs Up
History of love and marriage in the U.S. including contraception, sex education, and family size.
America Works
History of U.S. work from agrarian roots through the Industrial Revolution to today's gig economy.
American Environmentalism
Explore the human-environment relationship from early U.S. settlements to climate activism.
Infographics
Average Number of Children Per U.S. Family (Historic), infographic
Average number of children per woman in the U.S. from 1800 to 2024.
Average U.S. House and Household Size infographic
Average number of people per house and average house size in the U.S., 1790-2024.
Distribution of U.S. Household Net Worth infographic
Visual display of household wealth in the U.S. - the top 1% holds nearly 32% of wealth.
Immigration to the U.S. by Geographic Region (Historic) infographic
Line graph displays the number of immigrants to the U.S. by home region over time.
U.S. Population and Projection (1790-2050) infographic
U.S. population from its founding in 1790, to present, and projected U.S. growth through 2050.
U.S. Population Pyramid infographic
United States' population pyramid, or age structure diagram, for the 2025 population.
Lesson Plans
American HerStory
Students examine current and historic U.S. gender roles through two short mental exercises and research.
Connecting the Dots
Students create a population density map of U.S. population over time, from 1800 to today.
Family Counts
Students examine historic census data to investigate U.S. family size over time.
Good Old Days?
Acting as presidents from various points in history, students compare U.S. demographic and environmental statistics.
Let’s Go
Students use Google Maps to strategize urban transit and determine the costs/benefits travel choices.
Looking to the Future
Students write predictions on the state of a U.S. environmental, social, or demographic topic 50 years from now.
Making it in America
Students investigate U.S. wealth distribution and analyze historic documents related to the American Dream.
Mysteries of the U.S. Pyramids
Students construct and interpret population pyramids for the U.S. at 1880, 1920, 1960, 2000, 2025, and 2050.
Nation of Immigrants
Students listen to immigrant interviews and analyze a text about immigration history in the U.S.
Our Shared Environmental History
Students create a timeline of events in U.S. environmental history and write an Earth Day op-ed.
The People’s House
Students debate increasing the number of members in the U.S. House, then gerrymander simulated districts.
State of Our Union: Deciphering the Data
Students investigate a provided set of graphs on current economic, environmental, and health trends in the USA.
USA Population Circle
Fun large-group simulation of U.S. population growth since the first census in 1790.
Readings
America Eats
Survey of U.S. food trends: where it's from, how it’s prepared, and who has access.
America Learns
Journey through the history of schooling in the U.S. from the early 1800s to today.
America Moves
Trace the history of U.S. transportation from horsedrawn carriages to our present car culture.
America Pairs Up
History of love and marriage in the U.S. including contraception, sex education, and family size.
America Works
History of U.S. work from agrarian roots through the Industrial Revolution to today's gig economy.
American Environmentalism
Explore the human-environment relationship from early U.S. settlements to climate activism.
Infographics
Average Number of Children Per U.S. Family (Historic), infographic
Average number of children per woman in the U.S. from 1800 to 2024.
Average U.S. House and Household Size infographic
Average number of people per house and average house size in the U.S., 1790-2024.
Distribution of U.S. Household Net Worth infographic
Visual display of household wealth in the U.S. - the top 1% holds nearly 32% of wealth.
Immigration to the U.S. by Geographic Region (Historic) infographic
Line graph displays the number of immigrants to the U.S. by home region over time.
U.S. Population and Projection (1790-2050) infographic
U.S. population from its founding in 1790, to present, and projected U.S. growth through 2050.
U.S. Population Pyramid infographic
United States' population pyramid, or age structure diagram, for the 2025 population.
How Do I Get This Lesson Packet?
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