ABSTRACT
In the autumn of 1913 scripture lessons for the pupils of Dronfield Elementary School, Derbyshire, took a radical turn.1 The girls from standard six were reading the bible with their class teacher and headmistress, Miss Outram. One of the set texts for Advent dealt with the birth of John the Baptist. The verses prompted questions from the children about pregnancy and childbirth. At first Miss Outram told them to ask their mothers, but feeling she might lose the girls’ confidence if she blocked their curiosity she took a more direct approach. Telling them to close their bibles, she read them two stories, one about the beginnings of life, the other a warning on the dangers of immorality. Part of the accounts went as follows:
The first story
Shall I tell you a story of how God made things in the beginning, a true story? Well, once upon a time there was no world at all. Doesn’t it seem strange to think about it? And everything was dark. But away back in the beginning God was there just the same. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.
