International Workers' Day

High school (ages 12+)
Holidays & Celebrations

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/international-workers--day

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the year of second international's resolution?1889
2. What is the commemorated event origin?General strike in the United States beginning May 1, 1886
3. Why do people celebrate on May 1?It started from a big strike in 1886 that asked for an eight‑hour day, and later many countries joined to support workers worldwide.
4. How did the first big strike happen?In the U.S., workers stopped working on May 1, 1886, to demand shorter hours. The strike led to the Haymarket Affair on May 4.

Proletariat: The class of wage earners, especially industrial or manual laborers, who are dependent on the sale of their labor power.
Second International: An organization of socialist, communist, and labor parties founded in 1889, which played a significant role in promoting International Workers' Day.
Haymarket Affair: A labor demonstration and bombing that occurred in Chicago on May 4, 1886, which became a significant event in the history of the labor movement.