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Children

Overview

In the American Community Survey, there are tables specifically focused on data about children, others relating to fertility, and a good number more that are about other topics but include information about children.

This tool also includes data from the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services which collects a number of vital statistics, including data from the birth certificates of each birth recorded in the state. Through this data we report a variety of health indicators and demographic information related to births. If there are fewer than 10 observations for any part of a data table, the information is suppressed for privacy reasons.

All data sources are from the American Community Survey unless otherwise noted.

Indicators on the Profile Page

Why It's Important

Children
  • Number of children under 18
  • Child population by age, race, and ethnicity
  • Number of male children under 18
  • Distribution of male youth by race
  • This measurement indicates the total youth population of an area. Higher concentrations of school-age children can reflect greater need for youth-specific programming, community recreation facilities and other opportunities for skill and occupational development.
  • Male youth population was originally included in this tool to help support the My Brother’s Keeper initiative launched by President Obama in 2014. This initiative was meant to address the persistent opportunity gaps boys and young men of color face and to ensure all young people can reach their full potential. This data could help identify areas where there are high concentrations of male youth. ← also included in the “Age and Sex” topics page.

Indicators on the Profile Page

Why It's Important

Births
  • Number of births
  • Distribution of births by race and ethnicity
  • Distribution of births by select characteristics including inadequate prenatal care, low birth weight, and births to teen mothers
  • Birth data is important to understand the current and future population growth in an area. It can also be helpful to track characteristics of mothers and babies, and organizations serving families, women, and children could use this information when deciding where to focus their efforts/services, as well as which areas may be in need of greater support in the future.

Indicators on the Profile Page

Why It's Important

Fertility
  • Women who gave birth during the past year
  • Women who gave birth during the past year by age group
  • This data can provide a better understanding of changing household dynamics and population growth.

Methodology

The births dataset contains a row for each birth in the State of Michigan. Each birth record contains geographic information such as a census tract or latitude and longitude. When latitude and longitude are provided for a birth, D3 tags the record with the related census tract and then adds all of the births in that tract together. Where the location data is not available, the record is removed from the dataset.

Births Data Table

Columns

Description

Births Data: D3-Births table
Non-Hispanic White Births Births to mothers identified as White and non-Hispanic
Non-Hispanic Black Births Births to mothers identified as Black and non-Hispanic
Non-Hispanic Other Race Births Births to mothers identified as not Hispanic, Black, or White
Hispanic Births Births to mothers identified as Hispanic
Births with Less than Adequate Prenatal Care Less than adequate prenatal care was defined as births rated “inadequate” or “intermediate” on the Kessner Index†
Low Birth Weight Births Infants weighing under 2,500 grams were considered a low weight birth
Preterm Births Births where the calculated weeks of gestation were fewer than 37 weeks
Births to Teen Mothers Births to mothers under 20 years old

†Kessner Index

The Kessner Index is a classification of prenatal care based on the month of pregnancy in which prenatal care began, the number of prenatal visits and the length of pregnancy (i.e. for shorter pregnancies, fewer prenatal visits constitute adequate care.)

Kessner Index Measurement Definitions:
Adequate: Care that began within the first trimester and included an average of at least one or two additional prenatal visits per month of gestation, depending on the length of gestation.
Intermediate: Care that began during the second trimester of pregnancy with correspondingly fewer visits, or began during the first trimester but with fewer visits than would be appropriate for the length of gestation.
Inadequate: When no care was received or if care began during the third trimester. It is also inadequate if care began during the first or second trimester but less than five visits occurred, when the length of gestation was 34 weeks or more. When the length of gestation was less than 34 weeks, care is defined as inadequate when care began during the first or second trimester but a number of visits less than four occurred, that number depending on the actual weeks of gestation.

American Community Survey Data

Sample Survey Questions on this Topic

From the Census: Why We Ask: Family / Relationship to Householder

From the Census: Why We Ask: Fertility

Children

The ACS tables beginning with 09 are about children and relationships. In the listing below, table names have been simplified in some cases. References to children and grandchildren almost always mean under 18 years old. Income is for the last 12 months, adjusted for inflation to the value of dollars in the last year of the survey period. References to poverty status/level, receipt of food stamps/SNAP, and work status are all for the last 12 months.

Code Title

Children
B09001 Population Under 18 Years by Age
B09002 Own Children by Family Type and Age
B09005 Household Type for Children in Households (Excluding Householders, Spouses, and Unmarried Partners)
B09010 Receipt of Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Cash Public Assistance Income, or Food Stamps/SNAP by Household Type for Children in Households
B09018 Relationship to Householder for Children in Households
B09019‡ Household Type (Including Living Alone) by Relationship
B09020 Relationship by Household Type (Including Living Alone) for the Population 65 Years and Over
B09021 Living Arrangements of Adults 18 Years and Over by Age
‡Table also available in "collapsed" version: change "B" to "C" for table code.

Fertility

The ACS asks about women who have given birth in the last 12 months to better understand changing household dynamics and population growth.

Code Title

Fertility
B13002† Women Who Had a Birth by Marital Status and Age
B13004 Own Children by Family Type and Age
B13008 Household Type for Children in Households (Excluding Householders, Spouses, and Unmarried Partners)
B13010 Receipt of Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Cash Public Assistance Income, or Food Stamps/SNAP by Household Type for Children in Households
B13012 Relationship to Householder for Children in Households
B13014 Household Type (Including Living Alone) by Relationship
B13015 Relationship by Household Type (Including Living Alone) for the Population 65 Years and Over
B13016 Living Arrangements of Adults 18 Years and Over by Age
†Also available in racial iterations.

Other ACS Tables That Include Children

Code Title
B05009‡ Age and Nativity of Own Children in Families and Subfamilies by Number and Nativity of Parents
B05010‡ Ratio of Income to Poverty Level by Nativity of Children in Families and Subfamilies by Living Arrangements and Nativity of Parents
B10001 Grandchildren Living With a Grandparent Householder by Age of Grandchild
B10002 Grandchildren Living With a Grandparent Householder by Grandparent Responsibility and Presence of Parent
B10010 Median Family Income for Families With Grandparent Householders And/or Spouses Living With Own Grandchildren by Responsibility for Own Grandchildren and Presence of Parent of Grandchild
B10050 Grandparents Living With Own Grandchildren by Responsibility for Own Grandchildren by Length of Time Responsible for Own Grandchildren
B10051† Grandparents Living With Own Grandchildren by Responsibility for Own Grandchildren by Presence of Parent of Grandchildren and Age of Grandparent
B10052 Disability Status of Grandparents Living With Own Grandchildren by Responsibility for Own Grandchildren and Age of Grandparent
B10053 Nativity by Grandparents Responsible for Own Grandchildren by Age of Grandparent
B10054 Language and Ability to Speak English of Grandparents Living With Own Grandchildren by Responsibility for Own Grandchildren and Age of Grandparent
B10056 Sex of Grandparents Living With Own Grandchildren by Responsibility for Own Grandchildren and Age of Grandparent
B10057 Marital Status by Grandparents Living With Own Grandchildren by Responsibility for Own Grandchildren and Age of Grandparent
B10058 Employment Status of Grandparents Living With Own Grandchildren by Responsibility for Own Grandchildren and Age of Grandparent
B10059 Poverty Status of Grandparents Living With Own Grandchildren by Responsibility for Own Grandchildren and Age of Grandparent
B10063 Households With Grandparents Living With Own Grandchildren by Responsibility for Own Grandchildren and Presence of Parent of Grandchildren
B11003 Family Type by Presence and Age of Own Children
B11004 Family Type by Presence and Age of Related Children
B11005‡ Households by Presence of People by Household Type
B11008 Cohabiting Couple Households by Presence and Age of Own Children
B11013 Subfamily Type by Presence of Own Children
B17006‡ Poverty Status of Related Children by Family Type by Age of Related Children
B17010†‡ Poverty Status of Families by Family Type by Presence of Related Children by Age of Related Children
B17012‡ Poverty Status of Families by Household Type by Number of Related Children
B17022‡ Ratio of Income to Poverty Level of Families by Family Type by Presence of Related Children by Age of Related Children
B17023‡ Poverty Status of Families by Household Type by Number of Own Children
B19125 Median Family Income by Presence of Own Children
B19126 Median Family Income by Family Type by Presence of Own Children
B19128 Aggregate Family Income by Family Type by Presence of Own Children
B19131‡ Family Type by Presence of Own Children by Family Income
B22002 Receipt of Food Stamps/SNAP by Presence of Children by Household Type for Households
B23003 Presence of Own Children by Age of Own Children by Employment Status for Females 20 to 64 Years
B23007‡ Presence of Own Children by Family Type by Employment Status
B23008‡ Age of Own Children in Families and Subfamilies by Living Arrangements by Employment Status of Parents
B23009 Presence of Own Children by Family Type by Number of Workers in Family
B23010 Presence of Own Children in Married-couple Families by Work Experience of Householder and Spouse
B25012 Tenure by Families and Presence of Own Children
B25115 Tenure by Household Type and Presence and Age of Own Children
‡Table also available in "collapsed" version: change "B" to "C" for table code.
†Also available in racial iterations.