Curated OER
Development of Labor Unions
Students examine the conditions that led to organized labor unions. In this 20th century America lesson, students compare and contrast the Knights of Labor Constitution, the American Federation of Labor Constitution, and the Industrial...
Homeschool Journeys
Labor Day Activities
This Labor Day, provide class members with a variety of engaging worksheets offering games, word work, and more! Here, you'll find a game of tic-tac-toe, word puzzles, a coloring sheet, crafts, and vocabulary practice.
Council for Economic Education
Business in the Middle Ages: Working in a Guild
Long before modern labor unions, guilds worked to ensure that workers had a fair wage. But, in medieval Europe, they also cooperated with the government. Using a simulation and primary source analysis, young scholars become hatters in...
Curated OER
Handout 4C: Reflection UFW Today
How has the UFW or United Farm Workers labor union changed? Learners go to the website and explore several articles and specific legislative actions currently in place today. The worksheet includes answers and a web link, and will allow...
DocsTeach
Analyzing Photographs of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire
While a catalyst for the labor movement, 146 people lost their lives in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in 1913. A series of photographs of the aftermath of the tragedy help young historians consider the impact of the fire. The...
Curated OER
Farmworkers and the Union: A Lesson from Viva La Causa
Young scholars examine the role of labor unions. In this labor union lesson plan, students watch "Viva la Causa" and discuss the working conditions that led farm workers to strike. Young scholars also read a handout regarding labor...
Curated OER
Should They Stay or Should They Go?
Learners share opinions about labor unions, discuss the recent split within the AFL-CIO, and write an article based on interviews with union members.
Curated OER
Strike Up the Band
Students create song lyrics celebrating the history of labor unions serving the entertainment industry, then create posters illustrating the importance of each union to the industry they represent.
Curated OER
Unionized We Stand
Students compose a statement of basic rights to protect their own health and well-being. They research the history, power and purpose of unions in the United States before creating their own union to promote the interests of students.
Curated OER
Radio Program
Students identify and assess the impact of unions on workers, management, and community. They listen to radio stories, students are asked what can they conclude about the impact of unions on the lives of the workers, management, and...
Stanford University
Pullman Strike
History is ironic, isn't it? In the Pullman strike, federal power thought to protect citizens was used to break the union. What started as a quest for better wages and benefits during an economic crisis was crushed through violence and...
Center for History Education
Methods of Reform: The Lowell Mill Girls
Although the girls and women who worked in the Lowell Mills are not often seen this way, they are the forbearers of the American labor movement. Pupils examine primary sources, including testimony about life at Lowell and labor laws, as...
Curated OER
Labor Matters
Students examine the labor movement. In this labor issues lesson plan, students discuss the role of labor organizations and research their beginnings in order to better understand the debate over the Employee Free Choice Act.
National Woman's History Museum
The Triangle Shirtwaist Fire
On March 25, 1911, 146 garment workers died in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire. Class members use primary source documents to research the tragedy and how it lead to the creation of labor unions and new labor laws. As an exit...
Curated OER
Collective Behavior and Social Movements
For this collective behavior and social movements worksheet, students match 15 vocabulary terms to the appropriate descriptions and answer 6 multiple choice questions regarding the 2 sociology topics.
Curated OER
The Most Dangerous Woman in America: Mary Harris "Mother" Jones
Students discover labor issues of the 1800's. For this Pennsylvanian history lesson, students research the case of Mary Harris Jones and discover her work as a labor activist. Students discuss the case together in class.
Curated OER
Esperanza Rising
Students explore foreign cultures by reading a story in class. In this Hispanic history lesson, students read the story Radio Man by Arthur Dorros and identify the times discrimination is used in the story. Students discuss labor...
Center for History Education
The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire: Is Anyone to be Punished for This?
The stories of bodies falling to the pavement and girls dying in their seats echo to the present day. The New York City Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire—which killed 147 people, mostly young women and girls—galvanized the labor movement...
Judicial Branch of California
The Power of the Press: The First Amendment
Was what happened in 1886 at the Haymarket riot a crime or a case of xenophobia? Using political cartoons from the time, young historians consider the role the media played in anti-labor sentiment during the time and how that influenced...
EngageNY
Building Background Knowledge: Planning The Two Voice Poem
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...
New York State Education Department
US History and Government Examination: June 2012
The reform movements—such as abolition, the push for women's suffrage, and the labor movement—shaped modern America. A document analysis activity and essay prompt help learners consider why. Other items in the high-level exam include an...
Anti-Defamation League
Who Was César Chávez?
Scholars complete a KWL chart to indicate what they know about Cesar Chavez and then research what they want to know about this farm worker, labor leader, and civil rights activist. To complete the lesson, scholars research modern civil...
PBS
Organizing the Farm Worker Movement
The food on young scholars' tables was likely harvested by hands that fought for fair wages and working conditions. By examining the life of Cesar Chavez and Dolores Huerta, learners connect their daily meals with the struggles of those...
Curated OER
Labor Day
Students examine the events which led to the observance of Labor Day as a national holiday, and analyze the role of labor unions in American history, past and present, through a variety of activities.