Life Pre-Industrial Revolution

What you'll need

• Laptop and projector
• “Pre-Industrial Revolution” slideshow
• Paper and writing tools or computer, per student

1. Start by asking students what life was like in the 1700s in the era Pre-Industrial Revolution, before the widespread use of fossil fuels and electricity in our lives. During that period, life was more labour intensive without the use of today’s conveniences like washing machines and cars.
2. Open the “Pre-Industrial Revolution” slideshow. Invite one or two students to describe or tell a story of what's happening on each illustration or photo. Prompt them with questions such as how long do they think that activity would have taken? What was the energy source being used (wood, people, animals)? What safety concerns would they have?
   • Slide 2: Spinning yarn - taking raw materials like cotton and wool, and turning them into yarn and then into clothing, blankets, and other items. This required a lot of labour, that was either done at home, or in small workshops.
   • Slide 3: Plowing a field - this required oxens, horses, mules, and even people were used to pull plows and other field equipment for farming. 
   • Slide 4: Sailing - using hundreds of square yards of canvas to harvest the wind’s energy, sailboats were used as a mode of transport for goods and people. This was a time consuming and dangerous way to travel. 
   • Slide 5: Separating cotton seeds from cotton - this was a very time-consuming and labor-intensive process to do by hand. The resulting cotton was then spun into yarn.
   • Slide 6: Covered wagons - many of the settlers in North America used covered wagons that were pulled by horses to move West. It could take six months to travel the distance across Canada, and typically families would walk alongside the wagons. 
   • Slide 7: Cooking - burning wood to cook food and keep warm was often used. Burning wood especially indoors resulted in poor air quality. Other sources of energy for heat and cooking included straw, dried dung, and the sun. 
   • Slide 8: Washing clothes - this was often done in tubs or at the sides of rivers, using washboards or rocks to scrub.
3. At Slide 9, ask students to research and write a journal entry, detailing a day in their life if they lived in the early 1700s. Using the examples explored and researching further, have students reflect on how life was before machines, cars, and the widespread use of fossil fuels. This slide can be left up with the writing prompts. Students can choose who they are, where they live and consider questions like how they keep warm, how they cook their food and how they see at night. 
4. Students can be creative and may choose to use drawing or graphic novel styles to create their journal entry. 
5. Invite students to share their diary entry with the class.
6. Complete this activity by having a class discussion on how the lives of people 1700s differed so greatly from life today. 
   • Would there have been time for leisure activities? 
   • Would children play, or would they also be doing work for the family?
   • How might other factors, such as gender, race, and location play into what someone did?