WHAT WAS LIFE LIKE FOR CHILDREN WORKING IN THE

TEXTILE MILLS IN THE 1800S?

LEARNING OBJECTIVE:

To understand what life was like for the

children who worked in textile mills in the

1800s

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T H E C H I L D R E N W H O B U I L T V I C T O R I A N B R I T A I N ’

• What were the child workers known as in the 1800s?

• Why did children want to work in the factories?

• Why did the factory owners want orphans to work in their

factories?

• What did Thomas Burkes do to young, factory worker Charlotte

Smith when she tried to run away from his factory?

• In your own words, briefly describe how you think you would have

felt, if you worked in one of these factories? Why?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=87eVOpbcoVo

CARD SORT

Who said what?

Match the statements on the cards with the right

person:

Child worker

Factory owner

Overseer

Parent of child worker

THE VICTORIAN WORKERS’ SONG

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNcfnuUrZ4c

EXTENSION TASK

Write a short letter to a parent, as if you were an

overseer in a textile mill. Explain why you treated

the children working in your factory so badly.