Resource created by National Coal Mining Museum
This resource looks at the lives of children working in coal mines in Victorian England. Extracts from the 1842 Royal Commission into Children’s Employment (Mines) are used to highlight the working conditions faced by children working underground and to provide a source of primary evidence for pupils studying this topic.
Curriculum Links
- KS2 History: Local history study
- KS3 History: Britain as the first industrial nation
- KS2 Citizenship: Children's Rights, Human Rights
Learning Objectives
- Knowledge of the type of work children did in Victorian coal mines
- Understanding of what it was like for children living at the time and how children's lives have changed
- Skills to independently research a topic using archival material
Discussion and Activity Ideas
Please see individual pages of this learning story for discussion and activity resources related to each chapter.