Today’s Interactive Monday is all about migration. The New York Times uses census data to chart how Americans have moved between states since 1900. The data is sorted state by state with a button to switch between emigration and diaspora views.  

• In migration mode you can see where the people living in a particular state were born - this chart answers the question “where do the people living in California come from.”
• In diaspora mode you can see percentage of people born in a particular state residing in other states or regions - this chart helps answer the question “where do the people born in California live today and how has that changed over time.”
• Hovering over each chart will show what specific percentage of residents were born in or moved to a particular location.
• Each chart comes with two paragraphs describing some of the reasons or trends found in that states migration pattern.

Here are some questions to get a discussion started with your students:

• What are some reasons someone might want to move to a particular state?  What are pull factors for immigration?
• What are some reasons someone might want to move away from a particular state?  What are factors pushing immigration?
• Pick 2 states.  Are their charts similar or different?  What might explain those similarities or differences?

 Now that you’ve had some time to warm up, see what interesting finding you can come up with from the data.   For each question you could consider individual states or look at the graphs holistically.  Here are a few prompts to get your started: 

• Compare the years 1900 and 2000.  In which year were Americans more likely to be living in the state of their birth?
• What year(s) stand out as turning points in the graphs?  How dramatic is the shift in those year(s)?  Speculate about what might have cause that shift.
• Pick one state.  Write a one paragraph explanation of the trends in immigration and immigration in that state.  If possible include what factors explain those trends.  Make some predictions about these trends will change in the future.  

About the Author

Greg Livingston

Greg comes to us from a big Canadian family full of passionate educators: the joy of teaching and learning has always been an important part of his experience. He saw first hand the need for personal finance education after having his student research careers and create a budget in his computers class. His students would not stop telling him how important this project was, even years later. Greg brings his unique experience designing and managing online learning communities for Columbia University, Connected Camps, and others to the Next Gen team. He is excited to connect with great teachers and support them in their challenging and rewarding work. Greg is a proud jack of all trades - outside of work he likes to play soccer and hockey, make music, read old books, and explore the great outdoors.