Child Labor
Creator of Lesson: colby stevens 4/9/2007 8:59:00 PM EDT
BASIC INFORMATION
Grade Level: 11
Time Frame: 90 minute block
1 class period
10 minutes - review from yesterday
10 minutes - write in journals
20 minutes - lecture on child labor
20 minutes - introduction of pictures/class discussion
10 minutes - introduction of activity
20 minutes - answering essay questions on pictures
Subject(s): History, Social Studies
Materials, Photographs of child labor from Teaching with Documents:1800-
Equipment, and 1929.
Resources: Student Journal
Handout of activity
Handout of lecture notes
STANDARDS, KEY CONCEPTS and TEACHING NOTES
Standards:
NC- North Carolina Standard Course of Study
• Subject : Social Studies
• Grade/Topic : Grade 11
UNITED STATES HISTORY
The study of United States History in the eleventh grade is designed as a survey
course and a continuation of the Civics and Economics curriculum. After the
study of Civics and Economics, this survey course will begin with the national
period and the administration of George Washington. Throughout the
competency goals, there will be some overlap of time periods to allow for
teacher flexibility and to address the complexity of the issues and events. The
overall curriculum continues to current times. The focus of this course provides
students with a framework for studying political, social, economic, and cultural
issues, and for analyzing the impact these issues have had on American society.
This course goes beyond memorization of isolated facts to the development of
higher level thinking skills, encouraging students to make historical assessments
and evaluations.
• Competency Goal 5: Becoming an Industrial Society (1877-1900) - The
learner will describe innovations in technology and business practices and
assess their impact on economic, political, and social life in America.
Objective 5.01: Evaluate the influence of immigration and rapid
industrialization on urban life.
Objective 5.02: Explain how business and industrial leaders
accumulated wealth and wielded political and economic power.
Objective 5.03: Assess the impact of labor unions on industry and the
lives of workers.
Understandings: Child labor during this this time period had no regulations. Children
worked long hours under harsh conditions. Corporations did little to
help this situation.
Vocabulary: NCLC, Oliver Twist, Fair Labor Standards Act, Edward Murphy
Skills: Writing, Critical thinking, analysis
Teaching Notes: Teaching Notes
I. Child Labor
A. History
1. Working Conditions
a. A child with a factory job might work 12 to 18 hours a day, six
days a week, to earn a dollar.
b. The factories were often damp, dark, and dirty. Some children
worked underground, in coal mines.
c. The working children had no time to play or go to school, and little
time to rest. They often became ill.
d. By 1810, about 2,000,000 school-age children were working 50- to
70-hour weeks.
e. Some of the children working in coal mines worked naked, even
girls
B. Need for Reform
1. Organizations
a. Church and labor groups, teachers, and many other people were
outraged by such cruelty.
-They began to press for reforms.
b. The English writer Charles Dickens helped publicize the evils of
child labor with his novel Oliver Twist
- brought the situation to the American public.
c. In the United States it took many years to outlaw child labor. By
1899 a total of 28 states had passed laws regulating child labor.
2. Congressional Action
a. In 1924, Congress proposed a constitutional amendment
prohibiting child labor, but the states did not ratify it.
b. In 1938, Congress passed the Fair Labor Standards Act.
c. It fixed minimum ages of 16 for work during school hours, 14 for
certain jobs after school, and 18 for dangerous work.
II. National Child Labor Committee
A. Edward G. Murphy
1. Background
a. Worked heavily in the South with social work and education
b. Graduated from university of the south in 1889
c. Also an advocate for facing race problems in the south
d. Episcopal minister for twelve years
B. Functions of the Committee
1. Focus of the committee
a. non profit private organization founded in 1904
b. promotes the rights and well being of children in the workplace
c. mostly working with laws as well as regulations that prevent
children from being harmed in the workplace
2. Other aspects of the committee
a. help to provide an education to the children in the workplace
b. increase the awareness of the public on work done by children
c. tries to create a learning environment for children in the workplace
C. Lewis Hine
1. Role in passing the committee
a. became the companies photographer in 1908
b. helped lobby the ending of the child labor practice
c. later photographed for many other reforms in America, as wells as
reform magazines the survey
ASSESSMENT and ACCOMMODATIONS
Assessment/Rubric The journal that the students will write in will count as part of their
s: final grade.
Accommodations: The students would be given a copy of the lecture when they entered
the classroom. This would provide a visual illustrations for those
students with special needs. The teacher can also set up time to read
over the lecture for the ESL students.
LESSON SEQUENCE
Aim: What were the working conditions for the young children working
during the early 20th century?
Do Throughout the lecture I will be showing different pictures that
Now/Motivation: illustrate some of the worst working conditions during this time
period.
Activity The students will look at several pictures provided from Singer and
Description: then will answer several discussion questions in their journal.
Attachments
1. CI 3100 - child labor activity - task stream.doc
Essential 1. Looking at these pictures how would your life be different if you
Questions: would had lived during this time period?
2. By looking at these pictures, what changes are apparent from the
working conditions today?
3. How would feel if you were one the children in these pictures?
Application: Is there still child labor going on the world today? Where? What are
some changes that still need to be made?
Summary: Child labor during the turn of the century was an awful industry.
Children worked long hours in horrific conditions for long hours for
little pay. Lewis Hine, with his photographs, helped shed light on the
subject and the NCLC enacted the changes that needed to be made.
Sources Used
Wikipedia article on NCLC.
Website used
http://www.continuetolearn.uiowa.edu/laborctr/child_labor/about/us_
history.html