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Going to School in Victorian Times

The Victorian School

The Victorian Instructor

Victorian Kid Punishment

Schoolhouse Equipment

Lessons

The School Day

Playtime!

Going to Schoolhouse in Victorian Times

Although there had been schools dated back as far as the sixth Century many Victorian boys and girls did not have the opportunity of going to school. When Queen Victoria came to the throne in 1837 instruction was however mainly for the privileged. Rich children might have a governess to teach them at dwelling until they were old enough — if they were boys — to go to Public Schools such every bit Rugby (mentioned in the book, Tom Brown'southward Schooldays). The girls continued to be educated at home. Most poor children did not become to day schoolhouse, but earlier, Robert Raikes had started a organisation of instruction based in churches, the Dominicus School, and past 1831 i,250,000 children went to lessons in this way. That was about a quarter of the population at the fourth dimension.

Later on in Queen Victoria'southward reign a number of day schools had begun, including the British Schools, and the Ragged Schools (so called because of the tattered dress worn past poor pupils). In 1870 a law was passed saying that children anile between 5 and ten had to attend weekday school. The leaving age was raised to 11 in 1893. Nevertheless, many children were kept away from school by parents and employers who would rather accept them earning money.

The Victorian School

Many schools were quite grim places, oftentimes with windows high up and then that children could not see out. They were drab by modern standards, with very trivial on the walls except perhaps a stern text. Boys and girls generally were separated, having their own entrance and playground. Even though in smaller schools boys and girls were taught in the same classroom they would all the same sit separately. Some classes were very big, for instance the British Schoolhouse in Hitchin has a classroom for 300 boys! Hamlet schools would accept had smaller classes, but ofttimes classes had a very wide age range.

Because the school classes were so big, everything had to be done in a regimented style. The teacher would write things on the blackboard which was copied into books and learned. A lot of teaching was repetition, learning the names and dates of kings and queens, or reciting the "times" tabular array.

The Victorian Teacher

Teachers were often strict and by modern standards very scary. Children soon learnt to do what the teacher asked, otherwise they would get a rap across the duke with a ruler, or a clip around the ears. Instruction was often the job of single ladies (that's why y'all phone call the teacher Miss), and when yous married you stopped teaching. Fewer men taught considering pay was poor. Most teachers were not qualified by having a college education, they learnt "on the job" in a sort of apprenticeship. When it came to school leaving age, those with aptitude could stay on every bit "pupil teachers" where they would aid the teacher in exchange for lessons. Some larger schools used a organization of monitors. The teacher would select a number of the brightest boys and they would then exist taught by the headmaster in separate lessons after school. The side by side day these monitors and then took a grouping of boys each and taught them the things they themselves had just learned.

Victorian Kid Punishment

The Victorian teacher would employ a pikestaff to punish naughty children. The cane was given on the mitt or the lesser, or sometimes given across the back of the legs. In public schools even prefects would acquit and use a cane. All sorts of things might be punished: beingness rude, answering back, speaking out of turn, poor work, in fact anything that displeased the teacher. Children who had been caned usually kept tranquillity about it because if their parents found out they would probably be punished again. In Scotland a leather strap called a tawse was used in place of the pikestaff.

Other punishments were given including lines and detentions, and some, if non all, the deeds were written in a penalisation book or log.

Children who were slow at their lessons, or dumb, were made to wear a dunce's chapeau, a pointed hat with the letter D on it. They would then stand in a corner for an hr or more. Sometimes they stood on a pocket-size stool, the dunce's stool. At that fourth dimension in that location was no understanding that some children had learning difficulties or learned more slowly, and teachers thought that these children were just naughty or rebellious. Even left handed children were punished and made to use their right hand.

Schoolhouse Equipment

For every teacher the nigh vital slice of equipment was the blackboard and easel. This could be used so that children could re-create information or imitate the writing for exercise. Children started to learn to write using a slate - a sort of small blackboard - on which they wrote with a sharpened piece of slate chosen a slate pencil. Pupils brought a piece of sponge or a rag from home to clean the slate, or some just used their sleeve! As they got older children would write in a volume using a dip pen and blue-black ink from out of an inkwell. A book with ruled lines was used for handwriting practice, the copybook. The first line was printed, or copied carefully from the blackboard, and so the entire page was filled with identical lines. If a mistake was made it stood out glaringly, and it is from this that nosotros say you "blot your copybook" when yous brand a serious fault.

Arithmetics was performed with the help of a calculator, or the Victorian equivalent, the abacus. Those who practice with the abacus tin can perform calculations faster than their electronic equivalent!

Lessons

Victorian schools concentrated on the 3Rs Reading wRiting and aRithmetic. Most schools likewise included the 4th R, religion. To begin with, most reading was taught using the Bible, but information technology shortly became evident that this was besides difficult and and then primers were introduced which had moralistic stories. Pupils would have turns to read a portion of the story. Object lessons were used, particularly for younger children, where

the teacher would show a movie of an object and the child would call out the name. Next the children might learn arithmetic. This started past learning tables, but would later include sums that were copied down and worked out. For more complicated sums an abacus (or counting frame) helped with the answer. Weights and measures were all recorded in imperial measurements: this included pounds and ounces for weight and yards and furlongs for altitude. Money was also added upward differently. In those days at that place were 240 pennies in a pound, non 100 as there are today. There were coins such as the halfpenny, the farthing, and the crown.

We have already mentioned writing, and it was considered very important to develop a fine hand, and then a lot of fourth dimension was spent practising re-create writing. Another regular activity was drill, which was the Victorian equivalent of what we now call PE. This  might involve running, jumping, stretching and lifting weights, and was oftentimes accompanied by music.

In larger schools each day in that location would be an assembly of the whole school, when there would exist prayers, a Bible reading and perhaps even the singing of a hymn. Smaller schools would have this devotional activity in the classroom.

During later Victorian times boosted subjects such as needlework and carpentry were added, and in that location might even be an opportunity for nature studies or drawing of natural objects, specially flowers.

The Schoolhouse Day

School began at 9.00am and finished at 5.00pm. There was a two hr lunch break to allow enough time for children to go home for a midday meal, although in rural areas they might consume at the school.

Playtime!

Although near of the Victorian school child'southward life was rather tedious, the bright calorie-free was playtime. Children would play with a wide variety of toys: hoops, tops, skipping ropes and marbles. There would be games of tag, British bulldog, hopscotch, and football, played with an inflated grunter'southward float.

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