Children Who Lived 100 Years Ago

Our theme this term has been ‘Children Who Lived 100 Years Ago’. As part of our project, we have been looking closely at what life was like for both rich and poor children, who were the same age as ourselves. Life was certainly very different back then! Many children had to work in factories and mills to help earn enough money to buy food and it was very hard work. Young boys had to sweep chimneys, which was a very dangerous job and young girls had to work long hours as servant girls. People back then did not think girls were very important, so often, they did not go to school – we think that is very unfair!

We have been on lots of trips to find out more about the past. We have visited the Museum of London, where we met Jerry Meier, a costermonger, who sold ‘bits and bobs’ on the street. He told us all about the children who used to work for him, such as the Mudlarks. Mudlarks would scrabble around in the mud banks on the River Thames for interesting objects, such as old tin cups, which Jerry would clean up and sell and he would pay the children a farthing. Did you know that is how the Penny Farthing bicycle got its name? The big wheel was supposed to represent the penny and the small wheel was the farthing! We have also been to the Geffrye Museum, where we spent time looking at the interior of a room from 100 years ago and handling objects from that time, such as a flat iron and an old wash board.