Chart assignment
Charts to read and discuss
Read each chart, then answer its questions. Every chart shows its source and date; open it for a table of the numbers and the data to download.
Chart 1 of 3 · Inflation
How much does a dozen eggs cost in the US?
The interactive chart needs JavaScript. The numbers are on the chart's page.
A dozen grade A large eggs averaged $2.27 in September 2026. The record so far is $6.23 in March 2025; prices spiked in 2023 and 2025 when bird flu cut the number of laying hens. Prices are BLS averages across US cities since 1980, when this series begins, in dollars of the day, not adjusted for inflation. October 2025 is missing because a lapse in federal funding stopped data collection.
Questions to discuss
- In one sentence of your own, what does this chart show?
- Find the biggest change or difference in the chart. What might explain it?
- Who collected these numbers, and how recent are they? What else would you want to know before drawing a conclusion?
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI Average Price Data (eggs, grade A, large) (Public domain (U.S. government work)) · Data as of Sep 30, 2026
Open the chart and its numbersChart 2 of 3 · Income and poverty
What is the typical household income in each state?
The interactive chart needs JavaScript. The numbers are on the chart's page.
In the Census Bureau's 5-year survey ending in 2024, the typical household in District of Columbia earned $109,870 a year, the most, followed by Massachusetts ($103,960) and Maryland ($103,678). Mississippi was lowest at $56,447, and the U.S. median was $80,734. These are 5-year estimates in 2024 dollars, each with a margin of error.
How to read this chart
Each bar is the median household income in a state: half of households earn more and half earn less. The dashed line is the whole U.S., for comparison. These are survey estimates, and each has a margin of error: the true value is likely within that range, so states with overlapping ranges may not really differ.
Questions to discuss
- Find your state. Is it above or below the U.S. median, and by about how much?
- Why do statisticians often use the median instead of the average (mean) for income?
- Housing and groceries cost more in some states. What would you need to know to compare what these incomes can buy?
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (Public domain (U.S. government work). This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.) · Data as of Dec 31, 2024
Open the chart and its numbersChart 3 of 3 · Crime
Which big U.S. cities have the highest murder rates?
The interactive chart needs JavaScript. The numbers are on the chart's page.
In 2025 St. Louis, MO had the highest murder rate of the 89 biggest U.S. cities whose police reported a full year to the FBI, about 51.3 per 100,000 people, followed by Memphis, TN (31.0) and Cleveland, OH (28.0). Irvine, CA (0.0) and Plano, TX (0.7) had the lowest; the U.S. rate was about 4.4. Departments that didn't report a full year are left out (for 2025, New Orleans, Orlando and St. Petersburg, Florida). Each rate is per person the department serves, and a few, such as Las Vegas, Honolulu, Jacksonville and Louisville, serve their whole county. A city's rate also depends on where its borders fall, so compare cities with care.
How to read this chart
Each bar is the number of murders in a city in one year for every 100,000 people its police department serves. The dashed line is the U.S. rate. Murders are rare, so in a smaller city a handful more or fewer in one year can move its rate and its rank a lot.
Questions to discuss
- How many cities on the chart have a murder rate above the U.S. rate, and how many are below it?
- Why does a chart like this use murders per 100,000 people instead of the total number of murders in each city?
- A city's rank can jump from one year to the next. Why might small numbers make rates bounce around?
Source: FBI Crime Data Explorer, Uniform Crime Reporting Program (Public domain (U.S. government work); source FBI Uniform Crime Reporting Program) · Data as of Dec 31, 2025
Open the chart and its numbersTeachers: make your own chart assignment, or change this one. Free, no account needed.