Project 3 How Much Does My Vote

Count?
Assignment Description
If you are a US citizen and are 18 years old, you can vote! But the question is
who are you voting for? Does your vote count as much as someone who lives in
another state? How about another county? In this project, you are going to do some
research into the elections for the House of Representative, and figure out how much
does my vote count?

Materials Needed:

The U.S. Census database, for the years 2000 and 2010, located at:
http://www.census.gov/2010census/)
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Word
Graphics program such as Microsoft Paint or any other way to color in a
picture

Part 2 Please attempt to create the different gerrymandering maps using computer
software such as Paint or PowerPoint. If you cannot get this to work, you may color it
in by hand and scan it/take a picture of it to include in your project.

Learning objectives:
By the end of this project, students will be able to:
1. Locate and report information collected from the U.S. Census, including:
a. Population
b. House of Representative representation
2. Calculate the number of House of Representatives for each state, using the
following methods:
a. Hamilton
b. Jefferson
c. Webster
d. Hill-Huntington
3. Compare/contrast the Representative calculation methods
4. Calculate

a. population change
b. percentage
5. Experiment with gerrymandering a map to change the Congressional Districts for
a state.

The following class objectives are met through this project:

1. You will locate, critically read, and evaluate information to base conclusions
about given information in order to solve problems. (FS1), (QL1), (QL2),(QL3),
(AS1), (AS2)
2. You will solve for one or more variables from available information using
deductive reasoning skills. (FS3), (QL1),(QL2),(QL3),(QL4),(AS1)
3. You will be able to represent and solve real-world problems employing proper
problem solving strategies.(FS3), (QL1),(QL2),(QL3), (AS1), (AS2)
4. You will critically evaluate a quantitatively-based argument using deductive
reasoning and explain your arguments.(FS10), (QL4), (AS3)