Pyramid Building
(Lesson taken from the Population Reference Bureau)
1. Show the chart, "Three Patterns of Population Change," on the overhead. If you
use the figure with the Democratic Republic of Congo and Germany pyramids,
cover these up for the first part of the lesson. Explain that a population pyramid
shows the age and sex structure of a population. Point to the horizontal bars,
which show the percentage (or the absolute number) of males and females in each
age group.
2. Have students interpret the chart. Which age group has the greatest proportion of
people? (35-39) Which bar includes the students in this classroom? (10-14 or 1519) Are there more people in your age group or in the age group below yours?
Explain that a pyramid shows the history of a country's population growth. In the
United States from 1945 to 1965, people had larger families. These people are
now between the ages of 30 and 50 and are called baby boomers. Point to this
group on the pyramid.
3. Now show them pyramids for Congo and Germany. Have them describe Congo's
population structure. How is Congo's pyramid different from that of the U.S.?
(There are more people in the younger age groups.) Which age group in Congo is
the largest? (0-4) What proportion of the population is in this age group? (Almost
20 percent; about 9 percent are males and 9 percent females.) Now look at
Germany. How is it different? (The age groups are closer to being equal.) How is it
different from Congo? (There is a greater proportion of older people.)
4. Ask students: Why would a country 's leaders want to know the proportion of the
population in different age groups? What difference does the age of the people in
a country make? (People of different ages have different needs.) What kinds of
products do young people use? What kinds of services do they need? (diapers,
day care, toys, health care, schools, etc.) What about older people? (different
kinds of health care, different foods, different products) Is it important for a
government leader or planner to know the age of the population they are serving?
5. Explain that each student is going to draw a population pyramid for a specific
country. However, the class will practice first with the U.S. Explain that the pyramid
will have only four age categories instead of 16 like the ones shown.
6. Pass out copies of a blank Modified Population Pyramid outline. Put the
corresponding transparency on the overhead. Point out that males are on the left,
females on the right and they are measured as a percentage of the population.
Read off the age categories. Tell students that 14 percent of females are ages 019. Have them draw a line from the bottom of the box at 14 percent up to the next
line. Demonstrate. Do the same for the males and continue in the same manner for
the other age groups.
US Population by Age 2000 (percent)
AGES
MALES
FEMALES
0-19
15%
14%
20-39
15%
14%
40-59
13%
13%
60+
7%
9%
Source: U.S. Census 2000.
7. Next, distribute copies of the Population Pyramid Data Table and another copy of
the blank Modified Population Pyramid outline. Organize the class into groups of
four to six students each. Then assign students to graph the pyramids of particular
countries, identified by numbers. (Assign the countries in numerical order. Each
group will then be graphing a variety of pyramid styles.)
8. Have students share their pyramids with the other students in their group. They
should discuss similarities and differences in the shapes of their pyramids. What
might be some of the reasons for different shapes? For example, Country #12 has
many more males than females in the 20-39 age group (male workers migrating
from other countries).
9. Now have students group themselves by pyramid shape. (You may wish to post
large copies of the different styles of pyramids and then say, "Everyone with a
pyramid that looks like Congo come to the front of the room…") Students should
then line up by pyramid type, with broad based, narrow-topped pyramids (rapid
growth) on the left side of the room, slow-growth pyramids in the center, and
negative growth on the right side.
10. Students should look at the list of possible countries and guess which country
they represent. After students have made their guesses, the teacher (using the
Population Pyramid Data Table Teacher's Key) should identify each of the
pyramids graphed by the students.
11. Students should seek patterns among the graphs within the regions.
Pyramid Building: Population Pyramid Data Table
Males
Country 0-19
1
2
3
14
27
17
Females
2039
15
14
19
4059
13
6
10
60+
0-19
7
2
4
14
26
17
2039
14
15
18
4059
14
7
10
60+
10
3
5
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
10
26
20
14
28
11
13
19
28
11
16
22
27
14
14
24
13
17
22
30
13
25
25
21
15
16
27
19
23
13
27
25
12
20
15
15
17
15
14
14
15
15
15
15
18
16
14
18
15
16
14
18
16
13
14
16
16
17
15
14
15
16
17
16
15
17
15
18
13
12
9
13
6
14
14
10
5
14
12
9
6
11
12
9
13
11
8
5
13
8
7
9
12
12
7
10
7
12
6
7
13
9
10
2
3
7
2
10
7
6
2
10
4
4
2
7
7
3
9
5
3
2
9
3
3
3
7
7
2
5
3
8
2
2
8
4
9
25
19
14
28
10
12
18
27
10
14
21
27
14
13
23
12
16
21
29
12
23
24
20
15
15
25
18
21
12
26
24
11
19
15
12
17
15
13
14
15
15
15
14
17
15
14
18
15
15
14
17
17
13
14
16
16
17
15
14
14
17
17
15
15
15
14
17
13
5
10
13
6
14
14
11
5
13
12
9
6
12
13
9
13
11
8
6
13
7
7
9
12
12
7
11
8
13
6
7
14
9
14
2
4
9
2
13
9
8
2
14
6
4
3
7
12
3
12
5
4
2
12
3
3
4
8
9
2
5
4
11
3
3
12
5
Teachers Key:
Pyramid Building: Data Table Teacher's Key
Males
Females
Poland
Haiti
Thailand
Italy
Saudi
5
Arabia
6 Brazil
7 Australia
8 Ethiopia
9 Japan
10 Canada
14
27
17
10
2039
15
14
19
15
14
26
17
9
2039
14
15
18
15
26
15 12 2
25
12 5
2
20
14
28
11
13
17
15
14
14
15
19
14
28
10
12
17
15
13
14
15
4
9
2
13
9
11 Argentina
19
15 10 6
18
15 11 8
12 Kenya
13 Germany
South
14
Korea
15 India
16 Nigeria
17 Cuba
28
11
15 5 2
15 14 10
27
10
15 5 2
14 13 14
16
18 12 4
14
17 12 6
22
27
14
16 9 4
14 6 2
18 11 7
21
27
14
15 9 4
14 6 3
18 12 7
18 Lithuania
14
15 12 7
13
15 13 12
19 Egypt
United
20
Kingdom
21 China
22 Mexico
24
16 9
3
23
15 9
13
14 13 9
12
14 13 12
17
22
18 11 5
16 8 3
16
21
17 11 5
17 8 4
13 5
29
13 6
0-19
1
2
3
4
Dem. Rep.
23 of the
30
Congo
4059
13
6
10
13
9
13
6
14
14
60+ 0-19
7
2
4
10
3
7
2
10
7
2
4059
14
7
10
13
10
13
6
14
14
60+
10
3
5
14
3
2
24 France
14 13 9
12
14 13 12
25 Bangladesh 25
16 8
3
23
16 7
3
26 Iran
25
16 7
3
24
16 7
3
27 Indonesia
21
17 9
3
20
17 9
4
28 Ireland
29 Cyprus
30 Pakistan
15
16
27
15 12 7
14 12 7
15 7 2
15
15
25
15 12 8
14 12 9
14 7 2
31 Sri Lanka
19
16 10 5
18
17 11 5
32 Vietnam
33 Romania
23
13
17 7 3
16 12 8
21
12
17 8 4
15 13 11
34 Honduras
27
15 6
2
26
15 6
3
Papua New
25
Guinea
17 7
2
24
15 7
3
15 13 8
18 9 4
11
19
14 14 12
17 9 5
35
36 Hungary
37 Turkey
13
12
20