As many of us are working and teaching from home during the COVID-19 Shelter in Place, we are looking for educational and relevant educational activities. Now is a great time to fill out your Census Form as a family and explore why the Census is important to our communities. The following are some census related activities you can do while your children are home. 

Fill Out Your Census Form

Work with children at home to fill out your census form together. Go to My2020census.gov to fill out the form
You should receive a letter from the Census Bureau that has a code for your address. Sample of what the letter look like 
You may also receive a form in the mail. Sample of the form (English and Spanish)
(Bonus activity: Scavenger Hunt to find the form or letter)

Share your participation in the Census on social media. You can use #2020census #cococensus #CountMeIn

Educational Activities

The Census is important because it determines the number of representatives for each state, how $675 billion of federal funds are allocations, and provides critical information for planning our communities, including emergency response. 

Easy Overview 

These easy activities for children 5 and under illustrates why we all Count. 

Make your Family Count Sesame Street Video

Coloring and drawing activity (English)
Coloring and drawing activity (Spanish)
Coloring pages and activities from First 5 California (English)
Coloring pages and activities from First 5 California (Spanish)

Everybody Counts Song and Video (English)
Everybody Counts Song and Video (Spanish)

Apportionment

The population of every state as counted in the census also determines how many representatives each state is given in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Watch the Amazing Apportionment Machine Video
Complete the Apportionment Worksheet (elementary)
Complete the Apportionment Worksheet (middle grades)

Understanding How our Communities Change Over Time

Using Census Data,we can better understand our communities

Population Over Time activity (elementary school)
Diversity Over Time (middle school)
Community Change Exploration (High School)

Census Data in Planning 

Census Data is critical to planning our communities, emergency response, health care, and transportation infrastructure.

City Planning with Census Data (late elementary or middle school)
The Opportunity Atlas asks the questions "Which neighborhoods in America offer children the best chance to rise out of poverty? " Explore this tool and see how census data is linked to social justice. Opportunity Atlas website and Opportunity Atlas lesson (high school)

Contests 

Video Contest to win up to $30,000 for a 30 second to 3 minute video about why the census matters
Due April 17, 2020

Resources

CC Spin

CC Spin is a student newspaper for Contra Costa High School Students. Students from various high schools throughout the County work with professional journalist to create a quarterly newspaper to distribute at schools throughout the district. Read CC Spin Special Section about the Census

Stats in School - U.S. Census Bureau

Most of the resources on this page are from the U.S Census Bureau’s Stats in Schools Program. There are more resources on their Statistic in Schools website.