Jane Addams: Champion of the People
Jane Addams was born in Illinois in 1860. Growing up in a comfortable family, she noticed early in life that not everyone lived with the same resources. Her father taught her the value of fairness and helping others, lessons Jane carried with her as she grew into adulthood. After finishing college and traveling to Europe, Jane visited Toynbee Hall in London. Toynbee Hall was a place where educated young adults lived in lower-income neighborhoods to offer support and education to their neighbors. This inspired Jane to create a similar place in her home state.
In 1889, Jane Addams and her friend Ellen Gates Starr moved into a large, old mansion in Chicago known as Hull House. At that time, thousands of immigrants from around the world were moving to Chicago to find factory work. Many of these families lived in crowded, unheated apartments and worked long hours for very low pay. Children often had nowhere safe to play or learn while their parents were busy working.
- resources:
- Supplies, money, or support that can be drawn on by a person or organization.
- immigrants:
- People who move from one country to live permanently in another.
- expanded:
- Grew larger in size, amount, or scope.
- poverty:
- The state of being extremely poor and lacking basic needs.
- reform:
- Improvement or change made to make a system or law better.
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Main Idea
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Context Clues
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Summarize
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Purpose
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Structure
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Fact & Opinion
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Preview questions from this passageShowHide
- 1Where was Jane Addams born and in what year?
- 2What inspired Jane Addams to create a place like Hull House in Illinois?
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About this biography passage for Upper Elementary
“Jane Addams: Champion of the People” is a biography reading passage about Jane Addams and Hull House, written for Upper Elementary. It takes about 2 minutes to read (349 words) and comes with an interactive quiz and a printable worksheet with comprehension questions and an answer key.