Coal Children: Working in Industrial Wales

Museum Workshop

Coal Children: Working in Industrial Wales

🔍 Discover and Explore

What was life like for the children that worked in the coal mines of Wales?

Become an historian and investigate the real-life testimonies of child workers, like 11 year old Henrietta Franklin who worked pulling the drams of coal in Merthyr Tydfil. Discover how the children that worked in coal mines played a part in transforming the Wales we know today.

✏️ Take Part

In this session you will experience the working conditions of child workers.

Pull a dram, crawl through a mine, and become immersed in the sights and smells of Wales’ industrial past.

ℹ️ About This Session

Coal Children discusses themes of health and injury and has some reference to death.

This is an interactive session that has physical elements. Please let us know when you are booking if you have any pupils that would be sensitive to these experiences, and we will do our best to make everyone feel comfortable!

Duration: 1 hour

Dates: To enquire about available dates and cost, please send your school’s name, number of pupils, year group and preferred dates to bigpit@museumwales.ac.uk or call (029) 2057 3650

Cost: Led by Museum staff - £40 for up to 15 pupils, £60 for up to 35. Free for some schools (see booking information).

Curriculum

Humanities: Enquiry, exploration and investigation inspire curiosity about the world, its past, present and future.

Health & Wellbeing: How we engage with social influences shapes who we are and affects our health and well-being. 

Languages, Literacy and Communication: Understanding languages is key to understanding the world around us

Learning Objectives:

Build up a body of knowledge and develop skills to connect and apply that knowledge in different contexts through exploring the daily life of children employed in the Welsh coal industry.
Lead and play different roles and understand the responsibilities of children in nineteenth century Wales.
Develop knowledge about their culture, community, society and the world, now and in the past by comparing their lives to the lives of children in the nineteenth century.
Build their mental and emotional well-being by developing confidence, resilience and empathy through learning about health and wellbeing of children in the past and their own lives today.