Process Paper
Our first topic we chose was too broad of a category. It was the Industrial
Revolution. From there we narrowed it down to the agricultural aspect of the
revolution. We then picked four inventions that we felt were the most influential.
Those included the steel plow, spinning jenny, seed drill and cotton gin. All of
these relate to the textile industry which included large advancement in the
revolution.
We started conducting research for permits on these inventions. This led
us to helpful pictures and most of our primary sources. Further research was
conducted to find good details on the inventions. Some sources that websites
used led us to more helpful links, resulting in a few main websites that carried
the most information. We worked together on finding these websites so we could
each give an opinion on whether to keep it or not. We spent two Saturdays
finding these sources and getting extra research for our overall project. We
wanted to have reliable sources to come back to for help on our project. Most
of our research was collected from websites, though some were gathered from
books and newspapers from the time period. When researching, if we found a
good source, we would site it and put it on a text document to be annotated later.
At first, we had no clue which way we were going to present our project.
Our first instinct was to create an exhibit. We chose an exhibit, but couldn't get
any substantial progress in creating it. After going through our options a second
time, we decided on a website; it seemed like the best way to display our data.
Weebly was our top choice for a website creator. It provided an easy way to
place media and text on a website. This was a key point because we felt like
the inventions should be displayed through pictures and not only text to provide
a more interesting experience for the readers. This would help aid the viewer
to not only read about the invention, but see patents and actual pictures of the
inventions.
Our topic relates to this years theme of Turning Points in History. Most
people do not know how important advancements in textiles really started and
their influences on other inventions in agriculture. The Industrial Revolution was
probably one of the most influential advances in history that helped develop how
we do things today. People needed jobs before the revolution occurred. More job
opportunities opened up due to the massive expanse in agriculture and textiles.
People could now work in factories rather than on a farm. Another reason the
jobs in farming had decreased is demand. The inventions vastly increased
the efficiency of agriculture and textile production, creating a new world of
opportunity. This shows how much of an important change it was to the people
then. Not many people recognize the significance of the Industrial Revolution.