History · 3rd Year · Local Studies: Investigating Our Area · Summer Term

Work and Life in the Past

What was it like to live and work in our area long ago? We will explore old photographs and records to discover the jobs, shops, and daily routines of people in the past.

TL;DR:Take your pupils on a trip back in time to become historians of their very own locality! This topic helps them uncover the fascinating world of work, shops, and daily life from their grandparents' era.

• NCCA Curriculum Specifications
• SESE History: Local Studies - People in my locality

About This Topic

This topic aligns directly with the 'Local Studies' strand of the Irish Primary School History Curriculum, specifically focusing on the strand unit 'Homes, jobs,shops and schools' for this class level. It encourages pupils to develop an understanding of change and continuity in their own locality by investigating the working lives of people in the past. The emphasis is on developing the skills of a young historian: using a range of primary sources like old photographs, maps, census data, and crucially, oral evidence from older members of the community. By exploring tangible changes in local shops, industries, and common professions, pupils can grasp the abstract concept of time and appreciate how developments in technology and transport have shaped their own community.

The investigation should be grounded in the pupils' own environment to make it relevant and engaging. Activities should promote active learning, encouraging pupils to ask questions, compare evidence, and draw simple conclusions. This topic provides an excellent opportunity to foster intergenerational connections by involving parents, grandparents, or local community members, thereby valuing their memories and experiences as a vital historical resource. The ultimate goal is for pupils to understand that history is not just about famous people and major events, but is also about the everyday lives of ordinary people in their own town or village.

Key Questions

1. Identify three jobs that were common in our locality in the past but are rare today.
2. Compare the types of shops in our area today with those that existed 50 years ago.
3. Explain how changes in local work and businesses have affected our community.

Learning Objectives

• Identify three jobs or shops that were common in their locality in the past.
• Compare aspects of daily work and commerce from the past with the present day.
• Use sources such as photographs and oral testimony to gather information about life in the past.
• Describe how a change, such as a new technology, affected a local job or business.
• Communicate their findings using appropriate historical vocabulary.

Key Vocabulary

Blacksmith	A person who makes and repairs things made of iron, like gates and horseshoes, by heating it and hitting it with a hammer.
Cobbler	A person whose job is to mend shoes.
Drapery	A shop selling cloth, thread, curtains, and other sewing materials.
Apprentice	A young person who works for someone to learn a skill or trade.
Census	An official government survey, taken every few years, to count the population and record details like jobs and family size.

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

Common Misconception

Life in the past was boring and everyone was poor.

What to Teach Instead

While people had fewer machines and electronic gadgets, life was very different, not necessarily worse. Communities were often very strong, and people had different ways of having fun and enjoying life.

Common Misconception

Old jobs like the blacksmith disappeared because people became lazy.

What to Teach Instead

Jobs changed because of new inventions and technology. For example, when cars became common, there was less need for blacksmiths to make horseshoes, and new jobs like mechanics appeared instead.

Common Misconception

Everyone grew their own food and there were no real shops.

What to Teach Instead

While many families had vegetable patches, towns and villages always had important shops like the butcher, the baker, and the draper. These were often small, family-run businesses that were central to the community.

Active Learning Ideas

Hot Seat

Local History Detectives

In small groups, pupils examine old photographs of their local main street or a well-known landmark. They use a worksheet to list things that are different and things that have stayed the same, focusing on shops, transport, and what people are wearing.

45 min·Small Groups

Hot Seat

A Grandparent's First Job

Pupils prepare a short list of questions to interview an older family or community member about their first job or the shops they remember from their childhood. They can then report their findings back to the class.

60 min·Individual

Hot Seat

Then and Now: Shop Fronts

In pairs, pupils choose a type of shop from the past (e.g., a drapery, a cobbler's) and create a 'Then and Now' poster, drawing the old shop beside its modern equivalent (e.g., a department store, a shoe repair kiosk).

50 min·Pairs

Real-World Connections

• Understanding how their own town or village has grown and changed over time.
• Appreciating the work and skills of their grandparents' and great-grandparents' generations.
• Recognising that the jobs they do in the future might be very different from the jobs that exist today.
• Developing communication skills by interviewing family members about their lives and work.
• Seeing the importance of supporting local businesses in their own community.

Assessment Ideas

Quick Check

Teacher observation during group work where pupils are analysing photographs. Listen for their use of comparative language ('then it had...', 'now it has...') and their ability to ask questions.

Peer Assessment

Pupils create a 'Then and Now' drawing or short presentation about a local job or shop, highlighting three key changes they have discovered.

Quick Check

Pupils complete a 'K-W-L' chart (What I Know, What I Want to Know, What I Learned) at the beginning and end of the topic to reflect on their own learning journey.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why can't we just find all this information on the computer?

The internet is a brilliant tool, but lots of local history about everyday people and places isn't online. The best stories come from talking to people who remember the past and looking at real local photographs and documents.

Did women work in the past?

Yes, absolutely. As well as the very important job of running the home and raising a family, many women worked on farms, in local shops, as teachers and nurses, and in factories. Their work was vital for their families and the community.

What if we can't find any old photos of our area?

Photographs are just one clue. We can also look at old maps to see what buildings were there, or look at census records, which are official lists of who lived in each house and what their job was.