Questions:

• Why do you think this film was made and who do you think it was aimed at?
• Why do houses need coal?
• Do you think it is a realistic portrayal of family life - why?
• What is significant about the motif of time in the film?
• Why do we see dad burn himself twice whilst undertaking domestic duties?
• What responsibilities do you have that children back then might not have had?
• What is the significance of the words "Baby", "Father", "must" and "of course"?

Activities:

English / Health and Wellbeing: Sequencing activity - make a list of chores that the housewife carries out and the order that she does them.

History / Health and Wellbeing: Housework was a full time activity - find out how people deal with housework today.

History / Modern Studies: Compare how the baby is dressed to what babies wear today.

History / Modern Studies / Health and Wellbeing: Compare and contrast with modern meal times.

Health and Wellbeing / Gender: Count how many jobs mum does and compare to how many jobs dad does.

Health and Wellbeing / Art and Design: Find out how long rationing continued after the war. Research and compare the design of the home and the products used today.

Health and Wellbeing: Investigate shopping in the past. Debate - this house believes that the family is better off when the mother stays at home.

Health and Wellbeing: Create your own instruction manual for how people live today.

English / Media Studies: Take freeze frames from the clip and create thoughts and dialogue for the characters.

Health and Wellbeing: Make an instruction booklet on how to look after a baby for the day.

History / Modern Studies: Research the nuclear family and compare this to how we live today.

English: Look at patterns in language and words that are used over and over again in the film.

Record details

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