Old school
How does your school day go? Are you at home, learning on Zoom? Are you in your school building? Do you do homeschool with a parent? However you learn today, there are many ways kids in other times went about their school days.
The early days of education
Historically around the world, school was for rich families. Children who grew up in families without a lot of money didn’t go to school at all. Many never learned to read. But in 1635, the first public school opened — the Boston Latin School in Massachusetts — and it still exists today!
Even when public schools made education possible for all families, girls didn’t usually attend. Some adults thought girls should learn to read so they could read the Bible, but many girls were never taught to write. In 1727, the Catholic Ursuline Academy opened in New Orleans, providing the first school just for young women. It was also the first place Native Americans and Black girls could get an education.
One-room schoolhouses
In the early days of the United States, students from first through eighth grade studied together in one room. The youngest sat in the front and the oldest in the back, and one teacher would work with all of them. All of the students would help with chores like carrying coal or wood for the stove that kept everyone warm, or cleaning the chalkboard. Paper was expensive and hard to find, so students used tiny chalkboards, called slates, to do their work. These schoolhouses were usually found in rural areas (out in the country, not in cities) and would often be meeting places for people who lived in the town or even be where people gathered for church.
Boarding schools
Boarding schools aren’t all that common in the United States now, but in other countries, many students go away from their homes and to schools where they live and study. In some places, they’re schools where wealthy families send their children. In others, they’re schools that educate students who might have a difficult time in traditional schools. There also are boarding schools for deaf students and blind students.
Homeschooling
A lot of kids are homeschooled these days, and centuries ago, it was what almost everyone did. You might have noticed by now that people with a lot of money usually got a better education than people without it, and homeschooling was the same. Wealthy people would hire private tutors for their children. But homeschooling was also a way to pass cultural and family traditions from parents to children. Some people didn’t like the idea of a law making them send their children to school, some homeschooling was a nice option for them. Many families have chosen to keep their kids home from public school, so maybe you’re one who gets educated at home today!