Britain in the 1950s€¦ · London in the 1950s which offered a new artistic perspective, often using items drawn from advertising, comic strips or mundane objects. The most famous

Britain since 1948 Information Sheet

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Britain in the 1950sHome Life

It was rare for women to work once they were married in the 1950s. A woman’s place was in the home with her children, but in this decade lots of appliances were introduced to make a housewife’s work easier, such as vacuum cleaners, cookers and toasters. Only around a third of families had a washing machine though and even fewer had a refrigerator or freezer. The home was where the family spent most of their leisure time. Families would listen to the wireless in the evenings or watch TV if they had one. Children would play board games or play outside with their friends.

Work LifeIt was the responsibility of the man of the household to earn a living for his family. The jobs that women had held during the war years were given back to men and the women were no longer entitled to equal pay. At this time, there were lots of jobs available in factories and there was little unemployment. Around 1 in 10 employees worked in professional or managerial posts. There were around 700,000 coal miners in Britain due to the high demand of coal for electricity. Because there weren’t as many opportunities for travel as there are today, people worked close to where they lived.

PopulationIn 1951, the population in Britain was 50,290,000. 25% of the population in 1951 was over the age of 50. Britain experienced a ‘baby boom’ during the 1950s as after the war there was a rise in the number of births. The war also caused a surge of settlers from countries such as Jamaica and the Caribbean because Britain needed workers to help rebuild the country after the war. But many people feared the increase of black communities, particularly in areas such as Birmingham, Nottingham and west London. This was demonstrated by the Notting Hill race riots in 1958.

TechnologyAs well as advances in technology at home, such as with televisions and telephones, there were also a lot of technological changes around the world and even in space. Sputnik, launched by the Soviet Union on 4th October 1957, was the first satellite to orbit the earth. In 1956, the first transatlantic telephone cable was laid between America and Britain. 1956 was also the year that the hovercraft was invented.

There were lots of developments for computers too. The silicon chip was invented which made computers smaller although computers will still only used in industry. Sputnik

Popular CultureAfter the austere years of the 1940s, the 1950s was a period when young people wanted to enjoy themselves. Young people stopped dressing like their parents and developed their own styles. There was a big influence from America

in Britain, particularly in terms of music as rock and roll became more and more popular. Pop Art began in London in the 1950s which offered a new artistic perspective, often using items drawn from advertising, comic strips or mundane objects. The most famous Pop Artist was the American Andy Warhol.

Inventions1950 - Credit card1951 - Superglue1953 - Transistor Radio1954 - McDonald’s restaurants1955 - Lego1956 - Hovercraft1956 - Velcro1956 - Computer hard disk1958 - Modem1958 - Hula Hoop1959 - Barbie dolls1959 - Microchip

Read the Information Sheet and answer these questions: true or false?

Can you correct the statements that are false?

Name: _____________________________ Date: ____________________

Britain since 1948 Worksheet 3A


More people had freezers than washing machines. True

False

Families spent most of their leisure time at home. True

False

Half of all employees held professional or managerial posts.

True

False

There were around 700,000 coal miners in Britain. True

False

A quarter of the population of Britain was over 50 in 1951.

True

False

Sputnik, the first satellite, was launched by America in 1957.

True

False

Pop Art began in New York. True

False

Lego was invented in 1955. True

False

Barbie dolls were invented in 1956. True

False

Name: _____________________________ Date: ____________________

Britain since 1948 Worksheet 3B


1. List 5 appliances that were introduced in the 1950s to make a housewife’s work easier:

Read the Information Sheet and answer these questions:

2. What do you think a ‘wireless’ is?

3. How many employees worked in professional or managerial posts?

4. Why did people tend to work close to where they lived?

5. What was the population of Britain in 1951?

6. Why do you think the Notting Hill race riots occurred?

7. What was Pop Art and where did it start?

8. What year were these items invented?Lego

Hovercraft

Transistor Radio

Hula Hoop

Microchip

Velcro

Name: _____________________________ Date: ____________________

Britain since 1948 Worksheet 3C


Britain in the 1950s

Home Life Work Life

Technology Popular Culture

Population

Inventions

Britain since 1948 Picture Cards








Britain since 1948 Category Cards


Home Life in the 1950s

Work Life in the 1950s

Technology in the 1950s

Population in the 1950s

Popular Culture in the 1950s

✤ How many children on average did each family in Britain have?

✤ Who looked after the children?

✤ What new appliances did people have in the home?

✤ What kind of shops were there?

✤ What hobbies did families pursue at home?

✤ How many families had cars?

✤ What inventions were there?

✤ What changes were there in how electricity was produced?

✤ What advances were there in space exploration?

✤ How many people had a telephone?

✤ What advances were made in computing?

✤ What advances were made in transport?

✤ How many people lived in Britain?

✤ What was the ‘baby boom’?

✤ Why were immigrants invited to Britain and where from?

✤ What was the reaction to immigrants?

✤ What were the Notting Hill riots?

✤ What was the average life expectancy?

✤ Who usually went to work?

✤ What was the average weekly wage?

✤ How many coal miners worked in Britain?

✤ Why were there lots of factory workers?

✤ What jobs did women do?

✤ How many people were unemployed?

✤ What clothes did different groups of people wear?

✤ What trends were there?

✤ What music was popular?

✤ Which films were popular?

✤ What TV programmes were started?

✤ What leisure activities did people enjoy?

Name: _____________________________ Date: ____________________

Britain since 1948 Research Sheet


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Population in the 1950s_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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Name: _____________________________ Date: ____________________



Popular Culture in the 1950s_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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Did you know...?

Read the Information Sheet and answer these questions: true or false?

Can you correct the statements that are false?

Name: _____________________________ Date: ____________________

Britain since 1948 Worksheet 3A ANSWERS


More people had freezers than washing machines. True

False

Families spent most of their leisure time at home. True

False

Half of all employees held professional or managerial posts.

True

False

There were around 700,000 coal miners in Britain. True

False

A quarter of the population of Britain was over 50 in 1951.

True

False

Sputnik, the first satellite, was launched by America in 1957.

True

False

Pop Art began in New York. True

False

Lego was invented in 1955. True

False

Barbie dolls were invented in 1956. True

False

Name: _____________________________ Date: ____________________

Britain since 1948 Worksheet 3B ANSWERS


1. List 5 appliances that were introduced in the 1950s to make a housewife’s work easier:

Read the Information Sheet and answer these questions:

2. What do you think a ‘wireless’ is?

3. How many employees worked in professional or managerial posts?

4. Why did people tend to work close to where they lived?

5. What was the population of Britain in 1951?

6. Why do you think the Notting Hill race riots occurred?

7. What was Pop Art and where did it start?

8. What year were these items invented?Lego

Hovercraft

Transistor Radio

Hula Hoop

Microchip

Velcro

Vacuum cleaners, cookers, toasters, washing machines, fridges, freezers.

A radio

1 in 10 employees

There weren’t as many opportunities for travel as there are today.

50,290,000 (fifty million, two hundred and ninety thousand)

e.g. people were scared about the increase of black communities

Art that drew on popular culture, e.g. adverts, everyday objects. It began in London.

1955

1956

1953

1958

1959

1956

Britain in the 1950s€¦ · London in the 1950s which offered a new artistic perspective, often using items drawn from advertising, comic strips or mundane objects. The most famous

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