Fifth Grade
Worksheets
Clara Barton
Clara Barton was born on December 25, 1821. She was the youngest of five children. She was a quiet, shy child. Her childhood gave no hint of the strong woman that she would become.
She became a teacher in Massachusetts when she was seventeen. After teaching for several years, she decided she wanted more education. She had a year of formal schooling in New York. She then started teaching in New Jersey. Clara worked at a school where the parents paid for her salary. Only parents with enough money could send their child to the school. One day on her way to work, Clara saw many children standing out on the streets. The parents of the children could not afford to send them to school.
Clara offered to teach for free if she was given a building. The first day, fewer than ten students came. The next day there were more than twenty. In a year, there were hundreds of students at the school. It was the first free public school in New Jersey. She lost her job as head of the school because she was a woman. The job was given to a man. Clara moved to Washington, D.C. She then took a job as a clerk in a patent office. She was paid the same amount of money as the men who worked there. This was amazing for the time. Unfortunately, Clara was not treated fairly or with respect. She was treated harshly. Within a year she was assigned to a lower position with lower pay. After three years she was asked to leave.
