Child Labour activities for secondary level

The Industrial Revolution Child Labour

1. Question One:
How can you
describethis
source?
(Level 4)
Question Two:
Can you explain
what you believe
is going on in this
source? (Level 5)
Question Three:
Can you identifyreasons why you believe the artist drew the
picture in this way? Is the source, therefore, reliable? (Level 6)
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A
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2. What was it like to work in a factory?
L4 –Identify and describewhat it was like working in a factory in the Industrial
revolution.
L5 –Explain why children were used for work in factories.
L6 –Assessthe arguments for and against child labourin factories and the
reliability of these sources.
Sunday, June 30, 2024

3. This was drawn by a famous cartoonist, George Cruickshank, published in
1816. Remember there was no education for children at this time, and it was
expected that by the age of 7 children would be working.
What is happening?
What is Cruickshank’s message?
How useful do you think it is for us learning about conditions in
factories?
L4 –Identify and describewhat it was like working in a factory in the Industrial revolution.

4. Life at any time can never be described as simply
‘good’ or ‘bad’.
There are always different views about all kinds of
different features about the past.
There are both positiveand negativeaspects of
working in a factory
L4 –Identify and describewhat it was like working in a factory in the Industrial revolution.

5. Positive
things about
some Factory
Work
A house provided
for your family
Good wages
Excitement of
using new
technology
Guaranteed work
in factories
Schools
provided for
children of
factory workers
Some factories
allowed children
to work there
so families
could get more
money
L4 –Identify and describewhat it was like working in a factory in the Industrial revolution.

6. Why were
children used for
work?
In pairs, make a spider
diagram of your ideas.
L5 –Explain why children were used for work in factories.
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V
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Y

7. Cheap labour
They are powerless
They can be easily
replaced if
accidents happen
They can fit
into
small spaces
L5 –Explain why children were used for work in factories.

8. Using evidence…
In History we find out about the past using different sources of evidenceBUT
there is a problem, we have to work out if we can trust what we are seeing or
reading to give us an accurate or truthful idea about the past.
TASK:
•Lookthrough the different sources provided about child labour in the
19
th
century.
•Think…which sources show that the writer/artist OPPOSES child labour
and which sources show that the writer/artist AGREES with child labour?
•Throughout the task consider the reliabilityof each source to be able to
come to a conclusion.
•Use your worksheet to write your answers.
L6 –Assessthe arguments for and against child labour in factories and the reliability of these sources.
A
C
T
I
V
I
T
Y

9. How have we done?
L4 –Identify and describewhat it was like working in a factory in the Industrial
revolution.
L5 –Explain why children were used for work in factories.
L6 –Assessthe arguments for and against child labourin factories and the
reliability of these sources.
Sentence Starters:
Working in a factory in the Industrial Revolution was …
Children were used for work in factories because …
I believe child labourwas a good/bad thing. My reason for this is …
The reliability of these sources is reliable/not reliable because …
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Y