Idaho Social Studies 6-12.US1.49
The Standard
Evaluate how improved use of resources, new technology and inventions, and transportation networks influenced the growth of industrialization and urbanization.
Idaho Content Standards: K-12 Social Studies · Growth of Industrial World 1877-1890 (Bridge with US History II)
Teacher's field guide
What This Standard Means
What Students Need to Do
- Students trace how coal and iron ore, cheaper steelmaking, and expanding railroads helped factories grow. They explain how factory jobs drew people to cities and judge which change had the greatest effect.
What Mastery Looks Like
- A student can explain how coal fueled Pittsburgh steel mills, railroads moved steel, and mill jobs drew workers to the city. They can defend which factor mattered most using evidence from a map or short source.
Common Misconceptions
- Students may treat factory growth and city growth as the same change, rather than explaining how jobs drew people to cities. They may think railroads carried only passengers, not raw materials and finished goods.
How to Assess It
- Exit ticket: How did coal, cheaper steelmaking, and railroads help Pittsburgh grow? Choose the factor you think mattered most and explain why.
Lesson moves
Ways to Teach It
Using an 1880s rail map, place Pennsylvania coal, Lake Superior iron ore, and Pittsburgh steel cards; trace supply routes with string.
Ask: Which drew more workers to Pittsburgh, cheaper steelmaking or railroad links? Use one detail from a rail map and a Bessemer-process card.
Give pairs coal, Bessemer furnace, railroad, steel mill, and city cards; have them race to build and explain a cause-and-effect chain.
Find a local warehouse near a highway or rail yard on a map; compare why it sits there with a Pittsburgh steel mill.
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Related Standards
- 9-12.EC.7
Analyze the impact of events such as wars, industrialization, and technological developments on the business cycle.
- 6-12.US1.51
Evaluate the impact of industrialization and laissez-faire policies on labor.
- 9-12.WC.44
Analyze the causes and consequences of the Second Agricultural Revolution and the early Industrial Revolution.
- 5.SS.3.1
Describe examples of improved transportation and communication networks and how they encourage economic growth.
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