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Black History and Blacks in U.S. History
A Nation Divided
(1840-1861)

Slave Life

Slave Life
Reading Level
     edHelper's suggested reading level:   high interest, readability grades 3 to 4
     Flesch-Kincaid grade level:   3.94

Vocabulary
     challenging words:    slavery, teaching, cases, pregnant, illegal, schools, behavior, fell, sundown, mothers, freedom, nurse, slave, often, auction, former
     content words:    United States, Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln

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Slave Life
By Cathy Pearl 		  
1     What was slavery like for the people who were slaves? It was not a great or an easy life. Many of the people that were slaves had to work until they died. Families were torn apart, and many people suffered.
 
2     Many slaves were given a few clothes every year. They might get two shirts and a pair of pants. In the winter, they were given a heavier coat. These clothes had to last a whole year. Often they fell apart. Women would have to fix the clothes many times.
 
3     There were slaves who worked in the house and slaves who worked in the fields. House slaves usually had a better life. They would sometimes get better food or the old clothing that their owners didn't use anymore. This wasn't true for everyone. Some owners would dump out extra food so the slaves couldn't eat it.
 
4     The lucky slaves had owners who would teach them to read and write. This was rare. It was also illegal. Some women didn't listen and taught the slaves anyway. There were cases where slaves were given their freedom when the owner died. This would have been a very trusted slave. Most of the time, this didn't happen.

Paragraphs 5 to 11:
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