8th Grade "Greeting Card" Factories

Our Swain School eighth grade historians are studying Labor & Society in the early 1900's.  To enhance their understanding of work life during this time, they created and operated two different greeting card factories.

With this project,  students were divided into two different greeting card factories. Each company had a factory owner, supervisor, and workers. They were tasked with creating their own unique greeting card and bringing their product to market by using an assembly line.  Multiple rounds were "played" and with each round, production time was shortened. Supervisors and factory owners had to make choices to speed up production and increase profits. 

This activity revealed how the industrial revolution was experienced very differently depending on your class. 

Overall students love to compete, and they had a great time incorporating terms and ideas they are learning about while studying Labor & Society in the early 1900's.