work, particularly physical work, can be referred to as labour.

if you force or oblige someone to do something, you compel them to do it.

a chimney sweep was someone who would clean the channel above a fireplace, which takes smoke out of buildings.

callous people have a cruel disregard for others.

a mercenary is primarily concerned with making money at the expense of ethics.

Exploring the experience of child workers in the Victorian era

English

In 'Victorian childhood', pupils develop their spoken language skills through delivering a speech. In 'Perspectives on Gender', pupils build on these skills by writing persuasive speeches and taking part in debates.

In 'Sherlock Holmes', pupils were introduced to the Victorian context. In 'Victorian Childhood', pupils use non-fiction texts to develop their understanding of the era in more detail.

In this unit, pupils read a mixture of contemporary and nineteenth-century non-fiction texts that explore a common theme of childhood. They first read and compare the texts, before then writing and delivering a speech as part of a debate on Victorian working class children.

Victorian childhood: non-fiction reading and writing

Which of the following skills should you use before reading a complex text? 

Which word, beginning with l, is a more formal way of saying 'child workers'?

How would you describe Victorian attitudes to protecting child workers in comparison to attitudes today?

Which of the following is **not** a comparative conjunction which indicates a similarity between ideas.

Which **two** comparative sentence stems are most useful for indicating a very clear difference in ideas?

Boys were persuaded, through deception, out of the workhouses.

Boys were persuaded to leave the poorhouses.

Which of the following most accurately paraphrases the sentence: 'boys were inveigled out of the poorhouses'?

The Victorian era was named after which monarch?

A social class is a group in society with similar wealth and opportunities. Which of the following social classes would be more likely to be wealthy and hold power in society?

Chimney sweeps clean up any mess made when chimneys are built.

Chimney sweeps clean inside the chimneys, removing soot and debris from fires.

Chimney sweeps worked in stately homes, keeping the grand fireplaces tidy.

Which of the following is the definition of callous? Here it is used in a sentence: the callous man refused to help the girl.

What does the verb 'to compel' mean? Here it is used in a sentence: the teacher compelled the pupils to comply with the rules.

Introduction

What will you need for this lesson?

Are you ready to learn?

Equipment

Worksheet