Length: Four 45 minute class periods (2 days for research, 2 days for presentations)
Lesson Goal: Students will gain experience researching a topic to explain the impact of an Industrial Revolution invention on society and students’ lives at the time of its invention. Students will understand why the Industrial Revolution’s inventions are important to historical change.
A typical spinner. Mamie – Lancaster Cotton Mills, S.C. Lancaster, South Carolina, December 1908
Gelatin silver print
image: 4 11/16 × 6 5/8 in. (11.91 × 16.83 cm) sheet: 4 13/16 × 7 in. (12.22 × 17.78 cm)
Gift of the Sheldon M. Barnett Family M1973.83
- Show students this image by Lewis Wickes Hine. Ask them to look at the image for
three minutes without writing or looking away. Students should analyze the image and
look for important details.
After the three minutes is up, ask students to write at least
three things for what they notice in the image, what they think they can infer from the image, and what they wonder about the image.
- Describe the Spinning Mill. What is it?
A spinning mill was the machine that turned fiber into thread or yarn by spinning it.
Impact on Society – The Spinning mill had a profound impact on the textile industry. It allowed for a significant increase in productivity and reduced labor costs. This led to its widespread adoption, making textiles more affordable. It also contributed to the shift from home-based textile production to larger mills and factories.
Interesting fact – Many of the workers at a textile mill were children. Since then, there are laws that prevent children from working a certain number of hours or at a certain age. (You can find many more photographs by Hine that depict the Industrial Revolution and social conditions on the Collection website.)
- Research-Students sign up to research one invention and present the research as a video, slideshow, paper, song, etc.
1. Bessemer Process
2. Sewing Machine
3. Reaper
4. Pasteurization
5. Clock
6. Steamboat
7. Telegraph
8. Steam Locomotive
9. Steam Engine (James Watt’s version)
10. Revolver (with interchangeable parts)
11. Telephone
12. Photography
13. Calculator
14. Fountain pen
15. Radio
16. Cable Car
17. Battery
18. Typewriter
19. Bicycle
20. Dynamite
21. Motor Vehicle
22. Seed drill
23. Macadam Road
24. Food canning
Guide students to research answers to the following questions in sections:
History of the Invention:
What is the invention you are researching?
When was it created? Why was it invented?
Who is credited with this invention?
What country was it in invented in?
Description of the invention:
WHAT does it do?
HOW does it work?
Is there another interesting fact you discovered?
The invention’s impact on society:
In what ways did this invention help improve society?
How has this invention impacted you?
Is there a version of this invention still around today? If so, what is it like now? If not, what was it replaced by?
What would life have been like without the development of this invention?
Works Cited: List the websites you used to help you complete your research. Make sure you are using educationally sound sources- nothing from Yahoo Answers, Wiki anything, etc.
Standard: SS.Hist2.c.i: Analyze individuals, groups, and events to understand why their contributions are important to historical change or continuity.
Indicators of Mastery: Students display mastery of content by displaying accurate research of assigned invention through answering questions that explain the history of the invention, description of the invention, and the invention’s impact of society.