Website
Ducksters

Ducksters: Holidays for Kids: Labor Day

For Students 1st - 9th
Kids learn about Labor Day on this site. The history and facts about this holiday that celebrates the worker.
Lesson Plan
Council for Economic Education

Econ Ed Link: How Labor Got Its Day

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
If you asked students what comes to mind first when they think of Labor Day, what do you think they would say? The last days of summer? A family picnic? Shopping the Labor Day sales? The purpose of this activity is to broaden and deepen...
Handout
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History

Gilder Lehrman Institute: History Now: Celebrating Labor Day

For Teachers 9th - 10th
[Free Registration/Login Required] A high school lesson plan using two primary source quotes to determine if working conditions have improved in the last 100 years.
Website
A&E Television

History.com: The History of Labor Day

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn all about this National holiday started in 1894 that celebrates how we value work in America presented by History.com.
Article
A&E Television

History.com: Labor Movement

For Students 9th - 10th
Article takes a look at the history of the Labor Movement and labor unions through videos, pictures, speeches and more.
Graphic
Other

New York University: Labor Arts

For Students 9th - 10th
Numerous collections of cartoons, buttons, posters, murals, photographs, and similar artifacts, all pertaining to history of American labor, especially its drive to organize and its history of protest. Stretches back to the earliest days...
Handout
Library of Congress

Loc: Today in History: August 20: 8 Hour Work Day

For Students 9th - 10th
This Library of Congress site provides information on the fight for the eight-hour workday. Discusses labor unions and strikes.
Lesson Plan
Federal Reserve Bank

Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia: Ten Mile Day [Pdf]

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Using the book, Ten Mile Day, by Mary Ann Fraser, this lesson helps children understand division of labor, competition, and incentives in the workplace.
Lesson Plan
Utah State University

Teacher Link: A Day in the Life of an Employed Child

For Teachers 1st - 2nd
Ask your young scholars how they would like working everyday instead of coming to school? This site features a lesson plan to help make students aware of child labor abuses throughout the world.
Handout
Other

America's 1st Secretary of Labor: William B. Wilson

For Students 9th - 10th
Click here to see a portrait of Wilson & choose from numerous sections of his biography, including his service in Congress and as Secretary of Labor under President Wilson.
Graphic
Curated OER

Labor Day Parade, Main Street, Buffalo, New York

For Students Pre-K - 1st
Overhead view of the first Labor Day parade, in Buffalo, New York on September 5, 1882.
Handout
Other

Grandparents Day

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn about the history of this American holiday which is celebrated every year on the first Sunday after Labor Day.
Article
A&E Television

History.com: Knights of Labor

For Students 9th - 10th
An article regarding the Knights of Labor and their struggle for the eight-hour day, abolition of child labor, equal pay for equal work, and political reforms including the graduated income tax.
Handout
Other

Illinois Labor History Society: Early Days of Coal Mining in Northern Illinois

For Students 9th - 10th
Explore the coal boom of the late 1860s and learn about the difficult lives of the miners and their families.
Handout
Country Studies US

Country Studies: The Struggles of Labor

For Students 9th - 10th
This site discusses how for much of the latter half of the 1800s, the life of the common laborer was horrendous. Working in a unsanitary factory, for at least 10 hours a day, making far less than needed to survive, the struggles of the...
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs: Roman Empire of the 1st Century: Slaves, the Labor Force, and the Economy

For Teachers 9th - 10th
In this lesson, students will examine the various social classes and learn about the critical role that slaves, freemen, and plebeians played in the day-to-day operations of the Roman Empire. Students will learn about the various social...
Activity
Library of Congress

Loc: For Teachers: Holidays: Themed Resources

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A rich resource page with links to primary source information about a number of holidays and special days, such as presidential inaugurations.
Website
Digital History

Digital History: The Movement for a Ten Hour Day

For Students 9th - 10th
A brief look at the success the workers in several industries had in reducing their work day to ten hours.
Website
Independence Hall Association

U.s. History: Organized Labor

For Students 5th - 8th
Industrial workers, as industry emerged and grew in the last half of the 19th century, did not profit as the business tycoons did. Read about the very beginnings of attempts to organize as a force to demand higher wages, a shorter work...
Article
Other

Ohio's Steel Mill War: The Little Steel Strike of 1937

For Students 9th - 10th
A several page article about the labor unrest in the steel industries in 1937. Find out about what the union activists were fighting for, martial law that was declared in Ohio, and the final results of the strike.
Handout
US Department of Labor

Bureau of Labor Statistics: Social Workers

For Students 9th - 10th
Describes a day in the life of a social worker. Include info on education requirements and expected earnings.
Handout
Chicago History Museum

Encyclopedia of Chicago: Haymarket and May Day

For Students 9th - 10th
Read this historical account of the events that led to the infamous labor dispute known as the Haymarket Square Riots on May 4th of 1886.
Graphic
Curated OER

History Matters: Eight Hours for What We Will!

For Students 9th - 10th
Passage of the Adamson Act in 1916 was a huge victory for labor unions pushing for an eight-hour day. Read about that victory and find an illustration celebrating that fact.
Handout
Ohio History Central

Ohio History Central: United Mine Workers of America

For Students 9th - 10th
A look at the history of the United Mine Workers from its inception to present day. Find out what causes the UMW supported.

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