Early Schools

Laura M. Gateman was a freelance writer/photographer and author of Echoes of Bruce County, lived in Chesley, Ontario.

Early Schools seems to be a “first” of its kind. Written, I believe, as a children’s book, it will be read and savoured with amusement by the young. It has been researched and put together so that it is also an interesting and useful teaching aid. It is the kind of book any adult would enjoy as it brings back memories of school days.

The author uses words and pictures together to create a graphic study that is both educational and enjoyable.

Today’s child will certainly be surprised by accounts of how the first schools began and how children learned before schools, and of the dirt floors and paperwindows of early school buildings. Early teaching methods will certainly seem strange to today’s pupils. “Rules for teachers” instructs the teacher to bring a bucket of water and a scuttle of coal for the day. “Rules for students” reminds the child to be silent during classes and not speak unless it’s absolutely necessary.

The book has taken an old subject out of the dust and made it into a real prize for children, parents, grandparents, and teachers.