A good interactive from CNN to stimulate discussion in your classroom and infuse some math too (hat tip to a teacher at JumpStart National Conference who pointed this out to me; sorry that I didn’t catch his name:). As you move the slider bar on the left, the point of the graph moves up to show the percentile ranking:

• Questions:
  • What does the shape of the curve tell you about income distribution in the U.S.?
  • What are the income ranges that would put a household in the middle half of this graph (from the 25th to 75th percentile)?
  • What does it take to be in the top 5%, top 1%?
  • What is one weakness of this graph? (Doesn’t account for differences in cost of living of a given region and happiness factor)
  • How does looking at income this way impact how you might think about setting financial goals for yourself?
  • If you were to overlay a happiness factor on this chart, do you think there is a relationship between where a household falls on the curve and their overall level happiness? Why or why not?
  • Do a webquest to answer this question:
    • “What is considered household income by the Census Bureau?”  Are you surprised by what is included?
    • What is the relationship between household income and happiness? How much do you need to earn to be happy?
      • Do you agree with the research findings you discovered?

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  Here are some additional NGPF Blog posts about the relationship between money and happiness:

  • How Can Money Buy Happiness?
  • Audio Resource: Can Money Buy Happiness?
  • Question: How Can Money Increase My Happiness?

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.

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