ABSTRACT
At the start of the nineteenth century the infant school could be seen as a socially 'empty' space. The space was socially empty because at that time there were no pedagogic traditions for working with young children in groups, and also because the children were excluded from the adult world by the school walls. The chapter discusses pedagogy for young children. At the time the infant schools came into existence there were theories by enlightened pedagogues about upbringing in the family, but simultaneously, there were theories about educating older children at school. The theories about the pedagogy in infant schools contained elements of both theoretical domains. The search for new pedagogic techniques was related to the rise of new theories about power. The new education theories associated 'freedom' and 'natural' development with a new moral system. The child is seen as a tabula rasa, or to carry 'good' and 'rational powers' as its natural potential.
