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Rosie The Riveter Facts & Worksheets

Rosie the Riveter was a famous fictional character at the height of World War II. She was used by the American government in the campaign urging women to join the labor force. Today, she is used as the symbol for feminist movements.

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Rosie the Riveter was a famous fictional character at the height of World War II. She was used by the American government in the campaign urging women to join the labor force. Today, she is used as the symbol for feminist movements.

See the fact file below for more information on the Rosie the Riveter or alternatively, you can download our 17-page Rosie the Riveter worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

BACKGROUND

  • In 1942, Rosie was the subject of a song written by Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb, which inspired the “We Can Do It” poster created by J. Howard Miller of the Westinghouse Corporation.
  • The drastic enlistment of American men during WWII resulted in a shortage of people in the labor force. President Franklin Roosevelt, together with the War Manpower Commission, encouraged women to fill in the labor force.
  • On May 29, 1943, Norman Rockwell designed a photo for the Saturday Evening Post in addition to J.H Miller’s “We Can Do It” poster. Rockwell depicted a muscular woman based on his model, Mary Doyle Keefe. Miller was a graphic artist who was hired by Westinghouse’s Internal War Production Committee to create various posters to boost the worker’s morale.

ROSIE THE RIVETER CAMPAIGN

  • Originally, the Rosie the Riveter campaign was intended to encourage women to go to work. Between 1940 to 1945, the female workforce grew rapidly, but most of them were paid 50% less than their male counterparts.
  • They were hired in line assembly, sewing, factories, shipyards, and in the aircraft industry.
  • Rosie the Riveter also changed women’s fashion. Dresses and skirts were inappropriate for “Rosies” (working women) dealing with hard metals. They needed more practical clothing for work. Women began wearing denims, trousers, overalls, pants, boots, and bandanas, which later on became a statement for equality with men. Bandanas or head scarves in bright colors were also used.
  • Some accounts depicted women not receiving respectful treatment like what the campaign posters implied. During WWII, there were almost 19 million jobs held by women.
  • In recent years, Rosie the Riveter has been used to represent the fight for women’s civil rights and the feminist movements in general.
  • Documentaries such as The Life and Times of Rosie the Riveter (1980) and Rosies of the North (1999) were published. In 1984, the Hollywood film “Swing Swift” depicted the lives of the “Rosies” of WWII.
  • At the end of WWII, most of the Rosies returned home as housewives. The increase of females in the workforce didn’t happen again until the 1960s during the rise of Second Wave Feminism in America.
  • In 1943, about 310,000 women worked in the US aircraft which comprised about 65% of the munition industry. The bandana-clad Rosie was one of the most effective recruitment campaigns in American history. It became the most iconic image of working women during World War II.
  • Despite joining the workforce during the war, women received a 50% lesser wage than men.
  • The Rosie the Riveter campaign published in newspapers, posters, and photographs stressed patriotism of women entering the workforce.
  • In May 1942, the Women’s Army Corps known as WACs, a women’s service branch into the Army was created. By 1945, WACs had more than 100,000 members and 6,000 female officers.
  • Moreover, the Women’s Airforce Service Pilots or WASPs was established which made its members the first to fly US military aircrafts.

THE IMAGE BEHIND ROSIE

  • The identity of the true Rosie is still under debate. Some believe that it was Geraldine Hoff Doyle who worked in a Navy machine shop during the war.
  • Others thought that it was Rose Will Monroe, a riveter at the Willow Run Bomber Plant was the image behind Rosie the Riveter.
  • Based on the popular song by Evans and Loeb, Rosalind P. Walter was the real Rosie.
  • Among the many possibilities of Rosie, Naomi Parker Fraley was the most credible claim as she was pictured while working in a machine shop in California.

Rosie the Riveter Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about Rosie the Riveter across 17 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Rosie the Riveter worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Rosie the Riveter who was a famous fictional character at the height of World War II. She was used by the American government in the campaign urging women to join the labor force. Today, she is used as the symbol for feminist movements.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Rosie The Riveter Facts
  • Famous Women
  • All About the Rosies
  • Men and Women at War
  • Women’s Fashion
  • Gender Inequalities
  • World War in Photos
  • The Real Rosie
  • Women Can Do It!
  • Fascinating Woman
  • Today’s Rosies

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Link will appear as Rosie The Riveter Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, March 4, 2019

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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