Tobacco bag stringing: Secondary activity five

In this activity for grades 7–12, students will evaluate primary source photographs from the tobacco bag stringing collection and some of Lewis Hine's photographs.

A lesson plan for grades 8–12 Social Studies

By Pauline S. Johnson

Learn more

Related pages

• Tobacco bag stringing: Elementary activity four: In this activity for grades 3–5, students will read and evaluate a primary source letter from the Tobacco Bag Stringing collection. This should be done after Activity one, which is the introductory activity about tobacco bag stringing. Students will investigate the influence of technology, and its lack, on the tobacco bag stringers. They will do a role play/debate in which they will assume the roles of owners of companies and other people that were involved in the issue.
• Tobacco bag stringing: Elementary activity three: In this activity for grades 3–6, students will read and evaluate primary source letters from the Tobacco Bag Stringing collection. This should be done after Activity one, which is the introductory activity about tobacco bag stringing.
• Tobacco bag stringing: Secondary activity one: This activity for grades 7–12 will help students understand what tobacco bag stringing was and why it was important to communities in North Carolina and Virginia. Students will read and analyze an introductory article about tobacco bag stringing.

Related topics

• Learn more about American history, Great Depression, North Carolina, history, social studies, tenement homes, tobacco, tobacco bag stringing, and workers.

Help

Please read our disclaimer for lesson plans.

Legal

This is one of a series of activities that will help educators use the Tobacco Bag Stringing project materials in their classrooms. Throughout the series students will learn about tobacco stringing, study primary source documents and visuals, and practice critical thinking and analysis skills.

This activity should be done after Activity One, Activity Two, and Activity Three.

Learning outcomes

• Students will examine and evaluate primary source photographs.
• Students will compare and contrast tobacco bag stringers with tenement home workers in New York City.

Teacher planning

Materials/Resources

• Copies of the photographs from Tobacco bag stringing: Life and labor in the Depression. If possible, make copies of these pictures on photo paper of at least 4 X 6″. You can also use the photo and biographical pages from Activity four.
• A computer set to the tenement home work photographs of Lewis Hine in the “5000+ Child Labour Pictures by Lewis Hine”. Click the word “next” above the photograph to progress to the next image in the series.

Time required for lesson

40 minutes

Activities

1. Allow the students to see the photographs from the Tobacco Bag Stringing collection.
2. Have a quick class discussion about what they have learned about the topic of tobacco bag stringing. Be sure to include in the discussion the information that the stringing took place at the homes of the participants.
3. During a quick review, discuss with the students information about the influx of immigrants to New York City in the late 1890s and early 20th century. Explain that photographers such as Jacob Riis and Lewis Hine worked to combat social ills through their photography.
4. Using a computer, show the tenement home work photographs of Lewis Hine in the series “5000+ Child Labour Pictures by Lewis Hine”. (Click the word “next” above the photograph to go to the next image.)
5. Allow the students time to look at the photographs from the computer.
6. Students should complete a Venn Diagram in order to compare and contrast the lives of the home workers from the tenements of New York and the tobacco bag stringers.
7. As a class, students will discuss the similarities and differences of the two groups of people.

Assessment

Assess by completed Venn Diagram and discussion.