What was colonial schools like

These lessons and general education were conducted not in a school but in the house of the teacher. These were usually run, for a small fee, by a local, well educated housewife, and were therefore also referred to as ' Dame Schools '. At the Dame School the boy's education would consist of being taught to read and write English, learn the catechism and also learn lessons in behaviour.

Colonial Education - Elementary Schools Elementary schools were established in the colonies with a strong emphasis on religion. Boys began their education at Elementary Schools from the age of 7 years old to 10 years old. The boys first learnt the rudiments of Latin with the assistance of a text-book known as Lily's Latin Grammar.

Parts of speech together with verbs and nouns would be taught at the age of 7 and the rules of grammar and sentence construction would be taught at the age of 8. Their third year at school, at the age of 9, concentrated on English-Latin and Latin-English translations and basic math. Horn books were the most important tool used during Colonial Education. Reading and Writing skills were learnt from the alphabet detailed on a 'horn book'.

A horn book consisted of a piece of parchment usually pasted on to a small wooden board with a handle, and covered with a thin plate of transparent horn from where the name of 'horn book' was derived. The horn book was durable and inexpensive. The horn book displayed the alphabet in both small letters and capital letters. The Lord's Prayer in English was also included on the horn-book together with the mark of the cross.

The the alphabet detailed on the horn book was known as 'Christcross-row' or 'chrisscross'. Their lessons continued with Math and Latin to English translations and occasionally the study of Greek. Lessons in literature including the works of the great classical authors and dramatists, such as Ovid, Horace, Virgil, Cicero and Seneca.

Families helped to support the schools with firewood, money, food, produce, and fish. The children of families who could not afford to give firewood or something else to support the school and its teachers had to sit in the back of the room, as far away from heat as you could get. Kids were taught reading, writing, and arithmetic. Mostly boys attended school.

Girls were taught at home. The Middle Colonies, Church Schools: The Middle Colonies enjoyed religious tolerance, but children went to church schools rather than public schools, so they were also taught religion based on the church school they attended.

Log in! What were schools like in colonial times? Click here to read about early school houses. Where did young children go to school? Click here to read about Dame Schools. What were the teachers like in colonial schools?

Click here to read about the teachers. What kind of clothing did children wear in colonial times? Click here to read about their clothes. Did all children go to school?

How long did they go to school in colonial times? Kids learned to read from special books called hornbooks. Kids in colonial America were taught a trade, usually the one their fathers did, so they could continue the family business when their fathers retired. Often, kids would go to school and learn a trade. Graphics courtesy of ArtToday. Social Studies for Kids copyright — David White. But what you learned and how you learned it have changed through the years.