1. Hornbooks and Battledores were produced in England and America to help children learn the alphabet

2. Thinking about Battledores and hornbooks today sent me chasing around the library to see what other examples I could find

3. As they had a greater surface area than hornbooks, Battledores usually include woodcut illustrations in addition to alphabets and numbers

4. The word derives from the name for an early type of badminton paddle, which resembled the hornbooks from which Battledores emerged.

5. Battledores replaced earlier hornbooks for teaching children to read and usually included the alphabet, a prayer or religious verse, and some illustrated vocabulary words

6. The Battledore was an offshoot of the hornbook, and was printed on the double fold of stiff cardboard with the extra piece folded over in order to fit it for the double purpose it had to serve