HISTORY
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HISTORY |
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People in Industry
Resources needed A selection of activity sheets and source material is required for this activity. Prior to the lesson, these should be printed out, and photocopied in the quantities indicated. Click on the links to view these resources. 1. Story of Ripleys (1951) Note: Most resources relate directly to Ripley's, and all relate to the colour industry. Suggested organisation The class complete the timeline in small groups, and then they are divided into 4 groups, each completing a different task to contribute to a class report and display. Carrying out the activity All the information used is taken from primary source material, that is to say, from authentic historical documents. The information has been edited to make it more accessible to this age range of children. The class begin by completing the timeline, half the groups using Newspaper article 1, and half using the Story of Ripleys . Each group adds half the dates to the timeline, and then the whole class pool information, in order to complete the timeline. The information each group needs to date is colour-coded, and differentiated by bold ink if copied/printed in black and white. Correct dates, in order, for the timeline: 1808, 1812, 1813, 1814, 1820, 1834, 1840, 1863, 1868, 1874, 1880, 1881, 1882, 1882. The groups then complete one of the four tasks outlined below. The teacher can select one or more of these tasks, which get progressively more difficult. Less able children can be given task 1, and more able children given task 4. After completing the tasks, each group report on their findings, so that the whole class contributes to the study of Ripley & Sons, and a display of work is mounted. Task 1: The focus is to compare living costs over time. Children answer the questions on sheet 4, Family wages and shopping. The costs have been provided in decimal currency, but Imperial money is provided in the table below. For able children, you may wish to substitute these tables onto the activity sheet (12 old pennies = 5 pence). It can be seen that only an approximate conversion between Imperial and decimal money has been used, and ½ and ¼ pence hare referred to, even though these do not actually exist.
Weekly shopping
Task 2: Children add drawings to each paragraph of newspaper article 2, which has been provided in a format to allow this. Each 'box' can be cut out to give to a child, and 7 drawings are needed. It is suggested that children refer to books on Victorian life to add these drawings, e.g. to find out what working people wore. At the end of these sheets, there are some optional comprehension questions, one question relating to each boxed paragraph. The teacher can select from these questions, according to the ability of the children. Task 3: The focus is on the wage differential for responsibility, skill, age and gender. There are some sample questions on the Wages sheet, though teachers may prefer to add to or change these. More able children can be asked to describe as many of the jobs listed as possible, using information from newspaper article 2. Task 4: To learn about working conditions a century ago, children look at an agreement between unions and employers. In addition to the comprehension questions about the historical document, children are asked to draw up an agreement for attending school. The class teacher, or head teacher, can be involved in agreeing the 'rules'. Extensions / links History / Geography Science / Geography |