Dame schools were small, privately run schools for children age two to five. They emerged in Great Britain and its colonies during the early modern period. These schools were taught by a “school dame,” a local woman who would care for and teach ABCs for a small fee.[1] Dame schools were localized, and could typically be found at the town or parish level.[2]
At dame schools, children could be expected to learn reading and arithmetic, and were sometimes also educated in writing. Girls were often instructed in handiwork such as knitting and sewing.[3] Dame schools lasted from the sixteenth century to about the mid-nineteenth century, when compulsory education was introduced in Britain. Dame schools were the precursors to present-day nursery and primary schools.[4] Although sometimes ridiculed, there were many famous alumni, including Samuel Johnson and William Wordsworth for certain, and possibly Charles Dickens.[5]