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Golda Meir Facts & Worksheets

Golda Meir was the first female to serve the highest position of the country from 1969-1974.

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Golda Meir was one of the founding members and the fourth Prime Minister of Israel. She was the first female to serve the highest position of the country from 1969-1974.

See the fact file below for more information on Golda Meir or alternatively, you can download our 22-page Golda Meir worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION

  • Golda Meir (Goldie Myerson) was born on May 3, 1898 in Kiev, Ukraine and died December 8, 1978, in Jerusalem, Israel.
  • Her father, Moshe Mabovitch, was a skilled carpenter, and her mother, Blume Naidtich, was a housewife who instilled to the young Golda of the bitterness of the Jewish Diaspora.
  • When her family immigrated to the United States in 1906, she attended Fourth Street Elementary School and graduated as valedictorian. She then attended the Milwaukee Normal School and later became a leader in the Jewish’ Milwaukee Labor Zionist Party as her political views were molded by the society’s activities.
  • She continued her education and finished her teaching degree.
  • She taught children at a Yiddish school at the Jewish Center of Milwaukee three times a week and on most days, took her training into lecturing on Labor Zionism on the streets.
  • Her political vision was shared by her husband, Morris Myerson. The couple migrated to Palestine and lived on a kibbutz (a voluntary collective, agricultural community).
  • They later left for Jerusalem where she raised their two children: a son, Menachem, born in 1924, and a daughter, Sarah, born in 1926.
  • The couple halted their political lives and lived as normal family for several years until in 1928, she was offered secretarial job in Histadrut’s Mo’ezet ha-Po’alot, Women Workers Council.
  • She became busier until eventually, she and her husband separated due to irreconcilable differences.

EARLY POLITICAL CAREER

  • Golda was the kibbutz’s Histadrut (General Federation of Labour) representative as the secretary of that organization’s Women’s Labour Council (1928–32) then the head of its political department two years later.
  • During World War II, she held key positions in the World Zionist Organization and in the Jewish Agency – which functioned as the government of the Jewish settlement called Yishuv.
  • She also served as spokesman in negotiating with the British mandatory authorities while her people were getting detained.
  • After the war and upon the proposal of establishing the country of Israel on May 14, 1948, Goldie Myerson was a signatory of Israel’s independence declaration.
  • The Arab countries who opposed the establishment, declared war against the new state so Golda went to the United States and raised funds for the defense of Israel.
  • She even persuaded the Arab King not to join the war.
  • When the first war ended, Golda was elected to the Israeli parliament, called Knesset, in 1949 until 1974.
  • During her service in the Knesset, as the appointed Minister of Labor, Golda was in charge of finding jobs and housing for the nearly seven hundred thousand immigrants who returned to Israel between May 1948 and the end of 1951.
  • As the Foreign Minister beginning 1956, she helped enhance diplomatic relations especially with the African States.
  • She decided to retire from government service ten years later.

PRIME MINISTER

  • In 1967 however, she was was persuaded to become secretary general of Mapai (Israel Labour Party) by the Prime Minister, and later the secretary of the unified Labor Party.
  • In February 1969, PM Levi Eshkol died of a heart attack. To avoid a power struggle, the party compromised and prevailed upon her to become Israel’s next Prime Minister.
  • As Israel’s leader, PM Meir promoted peace settlement and diplomatic relations with the surrounding Arab countries.

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Golda Meir
  • Despite her efforts, the Yom Kippur War halted the negotiations when Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on October 6, 1973.
  • Israel was not ready for it after three successive wars in 1948, 1956 and 1967.
  • However, Israeli forces were able to regain the offensive but they suffered more than 2,700 casualties.
  • Her failure to mobilize the reserve forces sparked anger among the citizens. She and Defense Minister Dayan were heavily castigated.
  • Although her party won the 1973 election, Golda Meir vanquished her position and resigned on April 10, 1974. On June 3, the Prime Minister position was officially given to Yitzhak Rabin.
  • After retirement and regaining the affection of her people, she became an elder statesman and beloved public citizen.
  • She was voted the Most Admired Woman in America during the 1970s and served as feminism’s poster girl.
  • She died on December 8, 1978 at the age of eighty.

Golda Meir Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle that includes everything you need to know about Golda Meir across 22 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Golda Meir who was the first female to serve the highest position of the country from 1969-1974.

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Golda Meir Facts
  • The State of Israel
  • Israel in Meir’s Time
  • Woman of the Year
  • A Great Woman
  • Women of Times
  • A Leader’s Wisdom
  • She is a Leader
  • Think like a Prime Minister
  • Strong Women of Israel
  • Dedication
  • Promoting Israel

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Link will appear as Golda Meir Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, February 23, 2022

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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