“We Strike!”
Grade Level: 8th
Topic: Social Studies- Pennsylvania Labor Strikes
Approximate Time: 90 minute block
Learning Objectives:
Students will discover the motivating factors behind the emergence of strikes in Pennsylvania
and demonstrate their understanding by incorporating these factors into “mock strikes” including
the creation and presentation of picket signs.
Prior Set of Knowledge Includes:
Students will have had lessons detailing the development of new industry in Pennsylvania including
the iron, coal, textiles, steel and railroad. They will be familiar with the website--explorepahistory.com.
Standards:
8.1.8.C.: Produce an organized product on an assigned historical topic that presents and reflects on
a thesis statement and appropriate primary and secondary sources.
8.2.8.D.: Compare and contrast examples of how conflict and cooperation among groups and
organizations impacted the history and development of Pennsylvania--Ethnicity and race,
Working conditions, Immigration, Military conflict, Economic stability
8.3.8.A. :Examine the role groups and individuals played in the social, political, cultural, and
economic development of the United States.
Materials:
List of Auction Prizes (over-head/ smart-board projection)
2-3 Decks of Cards
Poker Chips (Tokens)
List of Case Studies and Their Respective Primary Documents (1 copy per student)
(3-4) Large Poster Boards
(3-4) Sets of Markers
A Map Of Pennsylvania with City Names Included
Colored Pushpins
Reflection Handouts (provided)
Strike Name Tabs (for map)
Computers & Access to the Internet (1 per student)
Anticipatory Set: (20 minutes)
✦ Upon entering the classroom, students will be broken up into (2-3) groups depending on
class size. The groups should average 9 students per group.
✦ Each group will be given a deck of cards.
✦ They will be told that they are going to compete in a competition with the other groups
to see who can build the tallest card tower. The group that builds the tallest will get 300
points to use later at a class auction, the 2nd group gets 200, and the last group gets a mere
100 points.
✦ They will have five minutes to complete the activity. Throughout the activity the
teacher should make sure to give them 2 and 1 minute warnings.
✦ Once finished, the winning group will be announced.
✦ The teacher will ask the students to talk as a group and pick one person who was the
“brain” of the activity--the one who thought up the idea and to nominate two students to
come get their money (or tokens).
✦ Once the decisions are made the teacher will inform the students that they have just
picked the head of their company, and two stock holders.
✦ The teacher will then inform the students that she/he forgot one major part of the
instructions-- the students must now take their earnings and split them up giving 60% to
the head of their companies, 20% to be split between the stockholders, and 20% for the rest
of the workers. An example distribution could be:
(1 Head of Company, 2 Stockholders, 5 Labor Workers)
300 tokens awarded
H.O.C- 180
✦ Stockholders- 80/2= 40
✦ Labor- 80/5= 16
✦
✦
200 tokens awarded
H.O.C- 120
Stockholders- 40/2= 20
Labor- 40/5= 8
100 tokens awarded
H.O.C- 60
Stockholders- 20/2= 10
Labor- 20/5= 4
After all the students receive their alloted tokens, the auction begins. The list of auction
items (attached) should be displayed on the board. As the teacher begins to auction the
items off, it is clear that no one but the one or two students who are the heads of their
companies have enough money to buy any of the items.
✦ As student’s begin to voice their complaints, the teacher will make statements and
questions like “ What’s the problem?” “ I don’t see an issue with it.” “What do you plan to
do about it?” “Johnny (head of company) do you see a problem with this?”
✦ These questions should cause a noticeable tension in the room. Students don’t like to
feel that the world is unfair, and once a sufficient amount of discontent is voiced, the
teacher will use these feeling to segue into the feelings of the thousands of workers who
labored day after day without fair pay, or equal rights.
✦
Lesson: (60 minutes)
Using the students background knowledge about the iron, steel, railroad, coal, textile and other
industries in Pennsylvania-- the teacher will link these growing industries to the feelings and
attitudes of their respective workers.
✦ The teacher will then split the students into groups of 5-6.
✦ The teacher will assign each group a “case study” from the list (attached) of an actual
strike that took place in Pennsylvania throughout the 1900’s.
✦ Each case study has a Behind the Marker essay as well as a primary document and
images that can be used as a reference.
✦ The students will use computers to search the website and read over their case studies,
pull out important information, and collaborate with their group to create their very own
strike posters (or picket signs).
✦Images of picket signs/ strike posters will be displayed on the board and
discussed prior to the assignment (see attached list for all images)
✦ A large map of Pennsylvania will be hung on the board.
✦ Once all groups are finished, each group will locate the town their strike took place and
place a colored push pin with a name tab into the location allowing the class to pair their
readings with a visual representation of the location of the strikes. This map will continue
to be used throughout the next week as a visual aid as additional strikes are added.
✦ They will then stand up in front of the class and explain why they are picketing, share
stories about their hardships, and rally the class behind them in their pursuit of justice. (all
information can be found in their case study reading material)
✦ The picket signs should summarize the main points of their companies strike-- which
then should be elaborated on during their five minutes of “striking” in front of the room
answering such questions as:
✦ Who are you?
✦ Why are you striking?
✦ What was the outcome of your efforts?
Closure: (10 minutes)
Once all the groups have presented, the teacher will provide any additional supplemental
information that would help clarify/ drive the point that there was a huge misdistribution of
wealth during the 1800/1900’s with a select handful of millionaires and thousands of poor,
impoverished, laborers. The teacher will explain that these strikes did not all happen at the same
time, but over a long period of time and that today was just a quick introduction into the
hundreds of continued strikes that occurred throughout the state. The teacher will then ask the
students to fill out their Reflection Papers which state: “ Reflect on what happened today. Please
write 3 main reasons why workers in Pennsylvania went on strike and connect their reasons to
the feelings you experienced throughout the lesson. Your reflection should be at least 5-10
sentences long making sure to include at least 1 question you have for moving forward.” Students
will be given 5 minutes to complete the assignment and hand it in before exiting the classroom.
Assessment:
The teacher will use formative assessment throughout the entire day by observing the students as
they take part in the activity, monitoring and adjusting to ensure discovery of key points, active
participation, and comprehension of lesson objectives. The teacher will collect the students
responses from the closure activity as a summative assessment so that the next lesson can be
tailored accordingly.
Extension:
This lesson should be a springboard for further lessons on the division between capital and labor
that grew within Pennsylvania throughout the 1800’s-1900’s and the continued fight for equality
within the labor forces. The lessons following should focus on the main nation wide strikes that
developed and the divisions of power and labor-- providing an in-depth look at the people in
charge of these massive industries.
Students should learn about the Great Railroad Strike, The Homestead Strike, The Great
Steel Strike, and the coal strikes that occurred throughout the state and connect this
knowledge to the formation of labor unions.
•
Students can look at Labor Unions that formed through reading original documents
including: “Political Platform of the Pennsylvania Federation of Labor, 1910.”, “A public
appeal adopted by the miners of the Consolidation Coal Company, Somerset County, PA,
October 9, 1922.”, “John M. Davis, "A Defense of the Knights of Labor," 1875.”, “Preamble
of the Mechanics' Union of Trade Associations, Philadelphia, 1828.” ,“Industrial Workers
of the World (IWW)”, and "Working Rules," International Association of Bridge,
Structural, and Ornamental Iron Workers, 1914.”
•All documents can be found “http://explorepahistory.com/storydetails.php?
storyId=1-9-22&chapter=0#markers” under Original Documents.
•
Students should analyze primary documents such as Andrew Carnegie’s “Gospel of
Wealth”, and Terrance Powderly’s “ On the Death of Andrew Carnegie in 1919” and
“Excerpts of Interviews with Migrant Workers, 1975”-- to further understand the
polarizing views of the working class and the capital power that ran their lives.
• Both documents can be found “http://explorepahistory.com/storydetails.php?
storyId=1-9-22&chapter=0#markers” under Original Documents.
•