Victorian childhood
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can describe some of the jobs Victorian children had to do and what this was like for them
Key learning points
- Victorian childhood was very different to childhood today.
- Many Victorian children needed to work, both in towns and in the countryside.
- In a Victorian illustration, a child can be seen fainting in the fields due to the hard work.
- Children worked in factories and mines, and as chimney sweeps; these jobs were often very dangerous.
- Historical sources show many children died or were injured doing these dangerous jobs.
Keywords
Mines - mines are deep holes dug in the ground to find precious materials like coal or metal
Chimney sweep - someone who sweeps the soot out of chimneys is called a chimney sweep
Sources - sources are things from the past that historians look at to try and find out what life was like at that time
Common misconception
Pupils may believe that all Victorian children worked, or that no Victorian children had an education.
Children from wealthy families were educated at home or sent to schools that were paid for. Some children went to small local schools on some days of the week and worked on other days. Some of the least fortunate children did not go to school at all.
Teacher tip
Many traditional children's toys were popularised in Victorian times. Many are still enjoyed today for example, dolls and doll houses, teddy bears, marbles, toy boats and trains, and puppets. Talk to pupils about their experience with toys like these that children have enjoyed since Victorian times.
Content guidance
Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
Depiction or discussion of upsetting content
Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
Supervision
Adult supervision recommended
Licence
Lesson video
Loading...
Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.John Brown was from ...
Q2.Which country was Balmoral in?
Q3.A piece of land with a large house on it is called an ...
Q4.Why couldn’t Queen Victoria travel to Europe as planned in 1842?
Q5.Queen Victoria lived in Buckingham in London, England.
Q6.Put these events into the correct order.
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the keyword to the correct definition.
Q2.Lots of poor Victorian children had to go to...
Q3.Only Victorian children that lived in cities had to work.
Q4.Children worked in mines because they were...
Q5.Where does coal come from?
Q6.Burning coal in fireplaces made the chimneys...
To help you plan your 2 history lesson on: Victorian childhood, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 2 history lesson on: Victorian childhood, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 1 history lessons from the Queen Victoria: how did Britain change during her lifetime? unit, dive into the full primary history curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.