Women of the Industrial Era
What can we learn from diverse people today and in history about private action for the common good?
Photo Credit: Women on the Home Front in World War One by Paul Townsend is licensed under CC by 2.0
Students learn about the Industrial Revolution and its impact on women. They learn about Sojourner Truth, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Susan B. Anthony and Clara Barton. At the conclusion of the unit, the students will organize a blood drive in the school in conjunction with the American Red Cross.
This lesson is designed to introduce the industrial revolution to students. They will learn about some of the key inventions that affected people in the nineteenth century and their effects on families, especially women. The work of children in supporting the family will also be explored.
Sojourner Truth's contributions to abolitionism and women's suffrage are revealed through her own words. She worked tirelessly to aid the freed men after the Civil War and brought increased recognition to their plight. We discuss the right of all voices to be heard in a democracy and determine how Sojourner Truth's work was philanthropic.
We learn about Elizabeth Cady Stanton and her leadership of the woman's suffrage movement. At the time it was hard for some people to see that women deserved equality or that change was possible, but her persistence and organization techniques helped raise awareness and involvement.
This lesson is designed to enlarge students' thinking about the famous suffragist Susan B. Anthony. Although she is best known for this role, she was active in six different causes as an abolitionist, educational reformer, labor activist, temperance worker, suffragist, and women's rights campaigner.
This lesson will explore the contributions made by Clara Barton as a nurse and founder of the American Red Cross. This is an example of the women from the Industrial Era making a difference through contributions to society. This lesson incorporates a service project connecting the students to the Red Cross.