To move up in society in the 19th century, men and women needed personalized calling or visiting cards. These small cards, about the size of a modern-day business card, usually featured the name of the owner, and sometimes an address. Calling cards were left at homes, sent to individuals, or exchanged in person for various … Continue reading What has replaced 19th Century Parlors and Calling Cards?
Civil behavior is required for civil society and a civil classroom. Web articles about why, how, and where children and young adults should learn manners are common. But can lessons on polite behavior in the classroom mask important truths that should be addressed rather than concealed? A common classroom rule is “Show respect to others.” But … Continue reading Classroom Manners: Analyzing behavior with primary sources
Did bundling, as pictured in the movie The Patriot (2000) really happen in colonial America? Yes! Examining historical relationship etiquette can provide students with insight into their own behavior. In 1811, an English dictionary described “bundling” as “a man and woman sleeping in the same bed, he with his small clothes, and she with her … Continue reading An Eighteenth Century “Date”- Bundling
Manners were changing in the 1920s, but did everyone act like a flapper? Or did people prefer the old-fashioned advice of the late 1800s, codified by Mary Elisabeth Wilson Sherwood in Etiquette, The American Code of Manners and hundreds of other nineteenth-century etiquette books? In reality, both were practiced depending on one’s age, location, and … Continue reading Was everyone a flapper in the 1920s?
New technology calls for new etiquette. What are the rules of etiquette for texting? for Twitter? for other types of social media? Why do good manners in communication even matter? Ask your students to explore these questions and make comparisons to “old” manners and technology from the past. Telephone Etiquette of the 1950s This 24-page … Continue reading Telephone Etiquette in the 1950s