Shutterstock.com
CCSS
R.1, R.2, R.7, W.1
The History of Waking Up
You’re back to school—and getting up in the morning is rough. How did we do it before modern alarm clocks?
Shutterstock.com
1. What: Nature
When: Beginning of Humankind
There was a time when the sun was the only major source of light. Most early humans went to sleep after it set and awoke when it rose. Temperature may have also served as a natural alarm. Without cozy beds, some people likely woke up at the coldest point of the night (just before sunrise).
2. What: Water Clocks
When: 5th century B.C.
Shutterstock.com (Plato); Kotsanas Museum of Ancient Greek Technology
A famous thinker and writer named Plato lived in ancient Greece. He invented one of the first alarm clocks. It improved on a device that used the flow of water to measure time. Plato’s version whistled like a tea kettle to wake its owner.
3. What: Incense Clocks
When: As early as the 6th century
INTERFOTO/Alamy Stock Photo
Incense is a scented material that is burned as a powder or a stick. In parts of East Asia, people used it in clocks. In one version, small metal balls fell onto a tray below as an incense stick burned down. This created a dinging sound used as an alarm.
4. What: Wake-Up Workers
When: Late 1800s-1900s
Smith Archive/Alamy Stock Photo
What’s she doing? Shooting peas!
In Great Britain at this time, you could pay someone to wake you. Knocker-uppers would come to your house and knock at your window with a stick. Some would even shoot dried peas at your window.
Write About It! Imagine you’ve just spent a month being woken by one of the above methods. Write a paragraph describing the experience.
