Objectives:
- Explain the political and social changes brought about by the Industrial Revolution.
- Analyze the development of money economies and economic specialization.
Scene 1 — Engage
Student Activity
Students read an overview of how the Industrial Revolution transformed largely agricultural, handcrafted economies into industrial ones. They watch James Watt: steam engine to see how steam power contributed to nineteenth-century change, then respond to a word cloud prompt by naming a modern technology that has had a major impact on society, similar to the steam engine’s impact.
Teacher Moves
Introduce the experience and objectives, then prompt students to explain and elaborate on their word cloud responses, highlighting parallels between the steam engine and modern transformative technologies.
Scene 2 — Explore 1
Student Activity
Students read explanatory text about the Commercial Revolution, the shift from barter to a money economy, economic specialization, and the rise of modern economic institutions such as banks and stock markets. They then complete a drag-and-drop activity matching key terms (economic specialization, money economy, competitive advantage) to their definitions and answer multiple-choice questions applying these concepts to historical and contemporary examples.
Teacher Moves
Monitor student work on the vocabulary and concept questions and ensure that students understand Commercial Revolution, money economy, economic specialization, and competitive advantage before moving on.
Scene 3 — Explore 2
Student Activity
Students view an image of women working in a British textile mill and read a text explaining how the Industrial Revolution shifted economies from agriculture and handicrafts to machine manufacturing. They learn about technological changes (new energy sources, factory system, division of labor, transportation and communication innovations) and social changes (worker exploitation, government regulation, rising wealth, and growth of the middle class). Using this information, they complete a two-column graphic organizer summarizing technological changes and social and political changes brought about by the Industrial Revolution.
Teacher Moves
Ask students to contrast life under an agrarian system with life during the Industrial Revolution, using their graphic organizers to support discussion of how technological innovations reshaped work and society.
Scene 4 — Explain
Student Activity
Students read about how Britain, and then Belgium and France, experienced industrialization, including Britain’s early competitive advantage. They first contribute to a class table by writing their own definition of the word “revolution,” then work toward a shared class definition. Next, they post to a class wall explaining whether “Industrial Revolution” is or is not an appropriate name for this period, supporting their position with evidence from the lesson.
Teacher Moves
Guide the class in developing a collective definition of “revolution,” then facilitate discussion by sharing interesting or exemplary student explanations about the term Industrial Revolution, noting that most historians view the changes of this era as revolutionary.
Scene 5 — Elaborate
Student Activity
Students read about rapid urbanization in London during the Industrial Revolution, including dramatic population growth between 1760 and 1860. Drawing on this context, their knowledge of industrialization, and optional resources in the Student Pack (such as A Population History of London, London, 1780-1900, and Child labor), they choose one writing task: a diary entry from a London factory worker, a newspaper article on factory working conditions, or an 1875 factory job advertisement. They post their writing to a shared wall and then review classmates’ posts, responding to at least two with a question or positive comment.
Teacher Moves
Use student responses to identify understandings and misconceptions, and to guide follow-up discussion.
Scene 6 — Evaluate
Student Activity
Students complete the exit quiz by answering all the questions.
Teacher Moves
Facilitate the assessment and use student data to evaluate understanding, address misconceptions, and identify areas for growth.
©2026 Exploros. All rights reserved.