ANDREA RUNNELS
As you probably know, the anniversary of International Women’s Day is March 8th. Do you know the origin though? To be honest, I was a little fuzzy on the details so I did some research (spoiler, I’m gonna talk about https://www.womenshistory.org/ in a few paragraphs which is where I did a little more research). What I found out was more about the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire tragedy, which occurred in late March. 146 people died, mostly female and many of them immigrants, due to dangerous working conditions. This led to a huge increase in the women’s suffrage movement and a demand for change. In 1980, Jimmy Carter changed the day to a whole week celebration. And in 1987 the entire month of March was finally declared Women’s History Month.
What women from history were your role models when you were young? Share that with your students or own kiddos. I remember being fascinated by the story of Helen Keller when I was little. Maybe it was because my grandmother lived in Alabama or reading one of her biographies, but I was intrigued. But I found her story of overcoming adversity super inspiring! I think I might have even seen the stage version of The Miracle Worker when I was little. The movie is a classic! Check out the trailer here: The Miracle Worker Trailer
As with most S.S. topics, I’ve got lots of ideas for honoring women any month of the year. In case you get overwhelmed I always have a Pinterest board for back-up! You can find my new board here: Women’s History Pinterest Board! Please note that some of the links are for background info or inspiration for teachers, not for student use.
Flocabulary
One of my favorite lesson hook ideas is using Flocabulary. This Women’s Rights clip was a huge hit with my 5th grade girls and I love it, too!! Super catchy!! You can follow up with the quiz or let students write their own women’s history rap. If you don’t have a subscription, check out the free trial options!
Want to connect the past to the present? You may have heard of a little film called Hidden Figures. You know the one that at present count has won 27 out of the 67 awards it has been nominated for??? Guess what?? Flocabulary now has a Katherine Johnson clip!! It gave me chills with the lyrics “But John Glenn said no, don’t launch me yet, I want Katherine Johnson to double check.” Wow……Take me to Katherine Johnson of Flocabulary!
I showed both clips on this Facebook Live. Ok, I feel obligated to apologize for the lack of Oscar-winning cinematography here. I’m trying people!!! And don’t worry, I will not be peddling any video production services any time soon.
All Things NWHM
So remember that research I talked about having to do in the intro? Well, I’m at peace with being terrible with details because I know I can fact check myself with awesome sites like the National Women’s History Museum site: NWHM! Here is a shortcut to the Women’s History Month promo video they posted a few years ago. I got confused when I watched it because they said it’s the 100th anniversary. It was the year they posted it! We didn’t miss it! *As always please watch YouTube videos in their entirety before using with kids. Don’t learn this lesson the hard way like I did (insert shocked face emoji here)!
The site is hands-down the best resource for Women’s History! Make sure you download the amazing posters!!! NWHM Awesome Posters That’s my name for them;). The thing that is different about this museum is that does not have a physical location yet. Of course funding is the reason. I created a Web Quest focused on exploring the parts of the site because I wanted to help build awareness for the museum and for kiddos to get what all goes into the planning for a landmark like this. I also kind of had a hidden agenda in thinking that kiddos may accidentally (on purpose) stumble across some really cool stuff and want to learn more!! The Web Quest is available in my Teachers Pay Teachers store right here: NWHM Web Quest!
The site even has a whole separate section just for Women’s Suffrage and the passing of the 19th Amendment.
It’s called Crusade for the Vote. Here is a link to a site where you can find the 19th Amendment in its original language. You could have students create their own timeline for the passing of the amendment as a reality check for how epic it was it actually got passed and the amount of time it took! If need help with how to teach timelines check out my Timelines: it’s About Time Post!
I am in love with the museum’s #donttellmeicant campaign. Check out this 30 second PSA.
Talk about empowerment! This could totally turn into a wax museum kinda deal with or kids could create their own tag lines showcasing their dreams!
Women in Government
Introduce your students to Sandra Day O’Connor, the first female justice of the Supreme Court! In my Constitution Day Crash Course post, I talk about how she has also founded one of my favorite Social Studies sites!!
Equally as notable is Sonia Sotomayor, the first Hispanic Supreme Court Justice who I mention in this Hispanic Heritage Month post! Here is a link to another freebie I found on Education.com!
Women’s Changing Role in the Workplace
The Equal Rights Amendment would make for a great debate topic or persuasive/opinion writing prompt!! Mad Men and Good Girls Revolt are two television shows that really capture the struggle women faced during the 60s and 70s that you could use for some background research and possible source for clips to use with students. Neither one of these shows is appropriate for kids, but you may be able to find snippets to use.
- Find Good Girls Revolt on Amazon Prime Video
- Find Mad Men on Netflix
Women’s Role in War Time
Women of the WWII Era
- My World War II Pinterest Board
- Background Reading for Students
- Lesson Plans for Teachers
- Great resource from Monster Wrangler Mike: Rosie the Riveter TPT
- Check out this Guide to Hiring Women in 1943! Kinda unbelievable!!
- I love the story of the Rockford Peaches: Link to the True Story of the women we fell in love with in the movie A League of Their Own! Do not show the movie trailer to students. Madonna. Enough said. I didn’t include the link for a reason.
Women in the Military
Another way to connect the past to the present would be to honor women in the military today. This issue is of personal interest to me because that lady you see in the picture would be my Aunt Patty, who is an Air Force veteran! Here is the Department of Defense’s really well-done tribute to women in the military.
- Women in the Military on NWHM
- http://www.military.com/daily-news/2015/12/03/carter-opens-all-military-jobs-to-women-in-historic-move.html
- http://www.military.com/veterans-day/famous-women-veterans.html
- G.I. Jane Movie Trailer
- Mae C. Jemison Blog Post
How about create a bulletin board or classroom door decoration as a tribute to women in the military? Ask your students to bring in pictures and tell about their own family members who may have served or are currently serving in the Armed Forces. You could even invite some to be guest speakers. Don’t forget to include your women coworkers and school staff! See if any of them are veterans or have female female members who are. If you need more ideas for honoring veterans, check out my Veterans Day post.
Women’s History Resource Collection
In the Facebook Live broadcast relay below, I give you a complete look at the entire Women’s History Collection!
Update March 2019: You can find all 3 resources on Teachers Pay Teachers now with an editable version and some other updates! Find them here: Women’s History Collection
I’d love to know what types of things you do to honor women! Join the conversation in my Facebook group! Click the picture to check it out!
