Working Conditions Teacher Resources

Our bodies simply aren't built for such a sedentary existence. Discover what happens to our bodies when we don't practice what we are built to do—move!

Students analyze documents of miners and identify their working conditions.  In this industrial revolution instructional activity students view documents and photographs of miners and discuss their conditions and what some possible...

Students discover concepts related to working conditions and practices. In this career lesson plan, students research information pertaining to specific jobs and then present it to their peers.

Eighth graders analyze primary source documents emphasizing young people in factory labor (mill workers during 1840-1860). They study hours of labor, ages of laborers, reasons for working, and working conditions. They write a poem or song.

Tenth graders, in groups, explore the garment industry before, during, and after the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire to learn about the Labor Movement, unions, and some of the people who impacted working conditions for both adults and children...

Safety first! Safety first! A short video and a PowerPoint presentation introduce job seekers to child labor law awareness, safety standards, and ways to reduce workplace injuries. Class members first take a short workplace...

From minimum wage to minimizing injuries, young workers need to know their rights! The sixth and final lesson in a series of college and career readiness activities gets eighth graders thinking about safety and labor laws. 

A short video compares the work of 20th century reformer Grace Abbott with that of 21st century activist Christina Jimenez. The digital short focuses on the commitment of  both women to immigrant rights, child labor, and health care.

Scholars build background knowledge to understand the life and work of the union leader and labor organizer César Chávez. As they read teacher-selected resources, they complete a Building Background Knowledge worksheet and engage in...

Scholars continue reading César Chávez's 1984 speech, "Address to the Commonwealth Club of California." Working with partners, they complete graphic organizers to determine a claim that Chávez makes about the UFW. 

A thought-provoking resource examines the future of automation and the effects on employment. Academics read informational text, complete written prompts, and participate in activities to understand automation and the possibilities for...

Free trade isn't getting something you want without paying for it. High schoolers take a short trip through economics with a video that discussess the ins, outs, and exchanges of international trade.

In a close reading of "The Overseer" chapter from Sugar Changed the World, groups focus on the words Aronson and Budhos use to contrast the lifestyles of enslaved people and their enslavers. The whole class then engages in an...

Class members conclude their reading of the supplemental text, “Bangladesh Factory Collapse: Who Really Pays for our Cheap Clothes?” and use the provided Evaluating Argument and Evidence Tool to analyze the evidence Anna McMullen uses to...

What can consumers do to pressure companies to produce "ethically manufactured goods"? Readers examine the evidence Amy Odell uses in the supplemental text "How Your Addiction to Fast Fashion Kills" to support her argument and her...

Pupils engage in a close reading of chapter one of Katherine Paterson's novel, Lyddie. After answering text-dependent questions based on their reading, they complete reader's notes about how the setting, characters, and plot interact.

Pupils reread selected passages from Katherine Paterson's novel Lyddie. After they finish, individuals gather textual evidence supporting whether Lyddie should sign a controversial petition and record their findings on graphic...

Scholars explore the question of whether labor unions are the agents of change as they continue reading César Chávez's 1984 speech, "Address to the Commonwealth Club of California." They discuss rhetoric in Chávez's speech and discover...

Scholars complete a mid-unit 2 assessment, analyzing how César Chávez supports his claims in his 1984 speech, "Address to the Commonwealth Club of California." Learners focus on paragraphs 18 and 19 of the speech, answering text-based...

Class members play an interactive game, matching strips of paper containing rhetorical devices with examples from César Chávez use rhetoric in his 1984 speech, "Address to the Commonwealth Club of California." Next, partners discuss...

César Chávez gave his 1986 "Wrath of Grapes" speech to educate consumers about pesticide use. Scholars complete an end of unit 2 assessment, applying what they learned throughout the unit to a new text. They then analyze the structure of...

Students read and discuss the book, Esperanza Rising. After analyzing and identifying the novel's structural elements, they examine working conditions for migrant workers in the 1930s. As part of the lesson, students in groups choose...

A day off from work to celebrate...labor? Find out why on the first Monday of every September, Americans and Canadians celebrate Labor Day. Viewers will learn about the unique history of the first Labor Day, in which workers not only...

Students demonstrate their ability to use the library to research into current working conditions for the American worker. They identify connections and compare findings about contemporary conditions and the in-class readings of The...