Women's History Month, Part 1: American Women

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Throughout the history of the United States, women have overcome many obstacles to make important contributions to American society. Women faced discrimination in many areas, such as education, careers, legal rights and voting rights.

Education
During colonial times, girls and boys were educated differently. Girls went to "dame" schools where they were taught how to read and write. The "master" schools -- similar to today's high schools -- were for boys. Girls could attend the master schools, generally during the summer when boys worked and only if space was available.

In the 1800s, opportunities for women in education began to improve. High schools and colleges for girls were established. Some colleges and universities that accepted only young men began to accept young women. In 1833, Oberlin College became the first higher education institution for young women and men. At the beginning of the 20th century, more than one third of all college students were women.

Women and the Law
In early America, women had few legal rights. Married women could not own property or make contracts on their own.

During the 1800s, many states began to pass laws that gave women more control over their lives. Laws were passed that allowed women to own property, make contracts and have control of any money they earned. Other laws helped women who had been mistreated and abandoned by their husbands and women who became widows when their husbands died.

Women and the World of Work
During the colonial period, a few women had careers in fields associated with men, such as medicine,law, and ministry. Many women who earned wages worked in jobs they could do at home, such as run a boarding house or work as a seamstress.

As industry rose in the 1800s, women began to work outside of the home in factory jobs. Most worked for long hours with little pay in poor working conditions. In some families, children also worked in factories.

During the 19th century, women began to gain acceptance in certain professional careers, especially teaching and writing. Women faced discrimination in many other professions, such as medicine. Women were not accepted into medical universities attended by men. In the early 1800s, nearly all hospital nurses were men.

By the beginning of the 20th century, some conditions for women in work showed signs of improvements. The United States government passed laws that improved working conditions for women who worked in factories. More women entered the field of medicine as top medical schools began to accept women.

Increasing numbers of women entered the work force, mainly in clerical jobs, factories, service and sale positions. During World War II, thousands of women joined the military as nurses and office workers. Many women also worked in factories, building materials needed for the war effort.

Even though many women worked in the same jobs as men, women earned less money than their male coworkers. In 1963, Congress passed the Equal Pay Act, a law requiring companies to pay women the same wages as men for the same work. However, by 1970, women still earned only about 55 percent of what men earned.

Women's Suffrage
During the 1800s, women began to speak up and organize to gain women's rights. In 1848, the first women's rights meeting was held in New York. One important issue from that meeting was women's suffrage -- the right to vote.

Leaders in the women's suffrage movement included Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Lucy Stone. For many years, these women and thousands of others across America worked to get the vote for women. In 1919, Congress passed the 19th Amendment that granted women the right to vote. The bill became law in 1920.

Women slowly began to gain leadership roles in government. Today, women hold many different political offices, from local governments to advisors in the cabinet of the President of the United States.

Looking Ahead
Although women have made many gains since America's beginnings, there are areas relating to women that still need improvements. Some statistics from the United States Census Bureau for the year 2000 present a hopeful future for women.

• Just over half of all Americans- -- about 143 million -- were women.
• Most women in America completed high school. Eighty-four percent of women 25 and above earned a high school diploma.
• Women outnumbered men in college. Fifty-six percent of all college students were women.
• Women still earned less than men did, but the salary gap between women and men decreased. The median annual salary for full-time working women was $27,355 -- about 73 percent of what men in similar careers were paid. Sixty-one percent of American women 16 and above worked in paying jobs.

The Census Bureau also reported that in 1997, more than 5 million businesses in the United States were owned by women.

Learn More!
General Resources for Women's History

Online Resources

• National Women's History Month Project
  Official site for the National Women's History Month Project. Find information about events celebrating the achievements of women, learning activities and more.

• National Women's Hall of Fame
  Web site for National Women's Hall of Fame located in Seneca, New York. Find information about the museum, biographies of famous women, nominate women achievers to be recognized, and learn about the hall's annual poster, essay and Web contest for older children.

• National Women's History Museum
  Web site for an organization devoted to women's history.

• Celebrate Women's History Month!
  Find links to curriculum articles, lessons, recommended Web sites and a book review about women's history.

• American Women's History: A Research Guide
  Extensive online guide for high school and up about the history of women in America. Includes links to hundreds of resources including primary sources, articles, books and online collections.

• Notable Women's Ancestors: Women's Biographies
  Web site providing biographies about women in history in a variety of fields and from various backgrounds.

• Notable Women's Ancestors: Women's History Links
  Find links to a host of Web sites devoted to women's history across the spectrum.

• Women's History Month
  Great free online resource containing biographies, timeline, quiz and learning activities about women.

• Women in American History
  Find fascinating information about the history of women in the United States from the 1600s to the present.

• Women's Study Database
  Searchable database from the University of Maryland's women's studies Web site with a wealth of resources in many areas.

• Women's History Month
  Comprehensive research resource about women's history.

• Women Who Made a Difference
  Find information about courageous women and a few general statistics on women in the 20th century.

• Famous American Women
  Webquest exploring a few notable American women for middle school age children.

• Women's Biography Sites
  Extensive list and links to sites about famous women across many fields.

• ProTeacher: Women In History
  Find links to lessons about women's history.

• Women Who Changed History
  An across the grades teaching resource from Scholastic focusing on five American women who made a difference in the 20th century.

• Women of the Century
  Learn about some famous 20th century women and explore many achievements of women that took place during that period.

• Women of NASA
  Learn about women who work for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), get information about technology, science and math careers and try some interesting learning activities.

• Women's History Printables
  Get five coloring pages about five famous women from different backgrounds. This Web page also includes links to the biographies of the women.

• Voices From the Gaps: Women Writers of Color
  Explore the lives and works of North American women writers of various backgrounds. (Ages 14 and up)

• Children's Encyclopedia of Women
  A collection of biographies about numerous famous women created by third and fourth grade children.

• American Women in History
  Comprehensive list of links to online resources about women in America from colonial days to modern times.

• Women's History Month
  Women's history theme page with information and activities from Time for Kids.

• Places Where Women Made History
  Learn about 74 historic places on the National Register related to women's history.

• Women's History: Teens
  Bibliography of books about famous women for teens, from Amazon.com

• Library of Congress Publishes New Guide to Women's History Resources
  Learn about American Women: A Library of Congress Guide for the Study of Women's History and Culture in the United States, a new resource from the Library of Congress.

• Ash, Maureen. The Story of the Women's Movement. Children's Press, 1989. ISBN: 0516047248 (Ages 8-11)
• Cullen-DuPont, Kathryn. The Encyclopedia of Women's History in America. Da Capo Press, 1998. ISBN: 0306808684 (Parents)
• Fox, Mary Virginia. The Story of Women Who Shaped the West. Children's Press, 1994. ISBN: 0516447572 (Ages 9-12)
• Freeman, Criswell, editor. Mothers Are Forever: Quotations Honoring the Wisest Women We Know. Walnut Grove Press, 1998. ISBN: 188765576X (Ages 4-8)
• Guiteras, Gregory. Famous American Women. Dover Publications, 2001. ISBN: 0486415481 (Ages 4-8)
• Heinemann Sue. The New York Public Library Amazing Women in American History. John Wiley & Sons, 1998. ISBN: 0471192163 (Ages 9-12)
• Lafontaine, Bruce. Famous Women Aviators. Dover Publications, 2001. ISBN: 0486415503 (Ages 4-8)
• Lunardini, Christine. What Every American Should Know About Women's History: 200 Events That Shaped Our Destiny. Adams Media Corporation, 1996. ISBN: 155850687X (Parents)
• Nicholson, Lois P. Helen Keller: Humanitarian. Chelsea House. 1995. ISBN: 079102086X (Ages 9-12)
• Sills, Leslie. Inspirations: Stories about Women Artists. Albert Whitman & Company, 1989. ISBN: 0807536490 (Ages 9-12)

LESSON 1:
American Women Firsts

Concepts:
Your children will learn about some "firsts" achievements by American women.

Lesson:
Explain to the children that throughout United States history, women have made many "first" contributions in different fields. Tell the children to study the information from American Women Firsts. Then have the children complete our worksheet. Check the children's answers on our answer key.

After completing the worksheet, let the children try these online interactive women "firsts" quizzes:

• First Ladies Quiz

• Groundbreaking Women Quiz