Then and Now: How It’s Made
DIRECTIONS: Choose an item that you use regularly day to day. Do some research to find out
how that object is made now, in the 21st century. Then, find out how the same object was made
before industrialization. Create a text or visual description of each process, and also describe
differences in the resulting products. For instance, what’s different about the materials used and
how the item works or how it is used.
Suggested Project Steps
1
Select a manufactured object to research.
2
Find and read or watch a source that shows or describes how the object is made now.
3
Find and read or watch a source that shows or describes how the object was made
before the Industrial Revolution.
4
Choose the format you will use to share what you learned from your research.
5
Create a poster, multimedia presentation, or video that shows the differences between
the way the object was made in the past and the way is it made now.
Then and Now Worksheet
Student Name:
Then and Now: How It’s Made
Step 1: Select a manufactured object to research. List manufactured (mass-produced) objects
that you use on a daily basis. Also describe what materials are used to make the object. Then
select the object about which you’re most curious.
Object
Materials Used in the Object
Then and Now: How It’s Made
Step 2: Find and read or watch a source that shows or describes how the object is made now. As
you learn about the process, list the steps using short phrases.
Step
A Phrase That Describes the Step
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Then and Now: How It’s Made
Step 3: Find and read or watch a source that shows or describes how the object was made before
the Industrial Revolution. As you learn about the process, list the steps using short phrases.
Step
A Phrase That Describes the Step
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Then and Now: How It’s Made
Step 4: Choose the format you will use to share what you learned from your research. You can
draw a poster (using a pencil and markers or using a computer program). Alternately, you can
create a multimedia presentation like a slide show or videoor you can write an essay
explaining in your own words the differences between how your selected object is made now
and how it used to be made.
Step 5: Create a poster, multimedia presentation, or video that shows the differences between the
way the object was made in the past and the way is it made now. Check with your teacher to see
if there are any special requirements or limits for how you submit your work when you’re
finished with the assignment.