As often happens, I ran across a random link (this time via Bluesky) and suddenly found myself investigating subjects as wide ranging as child labor, sardine "cartoners" in Maine, labor unions, the writer Emile Zola, and all the ways they share a story! 

What originally caught my eye was an article in French about Douarnenez and Concarneau, fishing villages on the Brittany coast of France, because I have stayed in both places multiple times. It was titled "Les Penn sardin savaient trouver la joie dans la misère" - "The Penn Sardin (the nickname of the women workers in the sardine industry) knew how to find joy in misery."

Little did I know that this year, 2024, the Brittany region is celebrating the 100th anniversary of an infamous strike started by women fish cannery workers protesting their miserable work conditions and pitiful pay. Many of those workers were mere children. Lewis Hine, anyone? 

In spite of the cute logo (shown below) of the Béziers sardine factory, female workers detested the owner for his harshness and intractability. In 1924, the women worked for 80 cents a day in freezing and unsafe conditions, called up even in the middle of the night if sardine boats appeared in the harbors with their haul. 

Nearly every French person, and certainly every Breton, can sing the song "Penn Sardin" about the strike, which went on from November 21, 1924, until January 6, 1925, when the factory owners gave in to the workers' demands. The 4-minute video linked in this paragraph includes some wonderful primary source photographs. It also shows the song's English translation at the top, and it's quite informative. I hope you'll take a look.

So why am I writing this post in the Celebrating Rural Maine group? Take a look at all these amazing images and newspaper articles of sardine workers (including photos of children taken by Lewis Hine) in...you guessed it...Maine! 

Some of the young cartoners in work room, Seacoast Canning Co., Factory #2. Five year old Preston working also. Location: Eastport, Maine. 1911

How would you use local primary sources to teach about child labor and women in the work force throughout history? What connections would you make to world labor conflicts such as the Penn Sardin strike in northwestern France or elsewhere in the world? How are sardines harvested and "cartoned" today? Is the sardine industry still a part of the Maine economy?

  Pre K - 2   3 - 5   6 - 8   9 - 12   Social Studies/History   labor   workers' rights   child labor   Lewis Hine  

  Jaime Beal    Stephanie Connors   Regina Holland  

Check out this album created by  Stephanie Connors  and posted in the Rural Education group.

The Maine Department of Education & National Council for History Education are excited to announce a series of professional learning opportunities made possible by a grant from the Library of Congress Teaching with Primary Sources program specifically designed for rural Maine PK-12 teachers to acquire strategies for designing and implementing a community civics and inquiry-based project.

Details are included below: 

Part A: Teaching with Primary Sources Online Course (December 2, 2024 - March 31, 2025) - Free, asynchronous, online Teaching with Primary Sources Course to acquire new strategies for analyzing primary sources, incorporating inquiry into your instruction, and accessing primary sources from the Library of Congress and more.

Part B: Saturday Colloquia (March 8, 2025, April 12, 2025, May 17, 2025 from 9am - 2:30pm) - Free, synchronous, online professional learning workshops led by expert historians, education specialists, and spotlight educators related to this year's theme:  Geography of the Place We Now Call Maine.

Part C: Onsite Colloquium (Summer of 2025) - Free, onsite (TBD) professional learning opportunity in the summer of 2025.  Sessions will focus on developing a community civics & place-based inquiry project with students.  15 teachers will be selected and receive up to $750 for project funding.

A flyer is attached with additional information.  Sign up today to reserve your spot in 1 or all 3 parts.   Stipends available for participation.

Art/Music    English/Language Arts    Mathematics    Science    Social Studies/History     rural    Maine  

An album centered on Maine Maple Syrup season.  Please add images, articles, and other artifacts for Maine teachers to use in their classroom in the spring during syrup season.    Pre K - 2    3 - 5    6 - 8    9 - 12    Library    Social Studies/History    Science