China Today - China's Population

 

 

 

China has more people than any other country in the world. China is almost equivalent, land-wise, to the United States. However, China has a much larger population.

The bars on the graph above compare the populations of China and the United States. Over 1,300,000,000 people live in China. This is four times more than the number of people who live in the United States!

Many Chinese live in cities. As people move to the cities, the cities grow. People build houses and businesses on land that was once used for farming. Then the land can no longer be used to grow crops. This makes it hard for China to grow enough food for its people.

The government was not sure there was enough food to feed people in the growing cities. So lawmakers tried to keep the cities from growing. The government even made a law to control population growth. The law said that most families living in cities should only have one child. Parents who have more than one child would have to pay a fine.

Comprehension Questions

1. According to the passage, China’s population is 

1. about equal to the U.S. population 
2. about four times larger than the U.S. population 
3. about half of the U.S. population 
4. only a tiny bit more than the U.S. population 

2. Why does the author include information about the U.S. population? 

1. to compare whether China or the U.S. is a better country 
2. to show that China is smaller than most other countries 
3. to help the reader understand how many people live in China 
4. to prove that China needs to increase its population 

3. Based on information in this passage, it can be concluded that 

1. it would be better if people only lived in city areas. 
2. China’s population wants to move to other countries. 
3. there is more than enough land in China to grow food for everyone. 
4. the Chinese government is worried about the population. 

4. Read the following sentences: “People build houses and businesses on land that was once used for farming. Then the land can no longer be used to grow crops.”

The word crops means 

1. food that is farmed 
2. types of businesses 
3. children 
4. apartment buildings 

5. This passage is mostly about 

1. the differences between China and the United States. 
2. the size of China’s population and where people live. 
3. laws in China about the population. 
4. why it’s hard to have children in cities. 

6. What law did China’s government make to try to control the population? 

(written answer)

7. Explain how making more food might solve a population problem instead of having to decrease the population. 

(written answer)

8. The question below is an incomplete sentence. Choose answer that best completes the sentence.

China has a lot more people than the United States, _________ both countries have about the same amount of land. 

1. for example 
2. in particular 
3. therefore 
4. even though