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Lincoln learned first from spelling books. It was customary to learn first to spell all the words of the spelling books and recite several times before advancing to read other books.[23] Lincoln studied Dillworth's Speller and Webster's Old Blueback.[24] Later then he advanced to reading Murray's "English Reader."[24]
Lincoln was noted for shouting out his reading lesson on the path from his home to the blab school and could be heard for a considerable distance.[25] He had the habit of reading anything aloud.[15] Between the ages of 11 and 15, Lincoln went to school occasionally between his obligated home duties.[26] All of Lincoln's schooling combined in various blab schools amounted to less than a year.[24][27] Many times the blab school Lincoln attended didn't even have a teacher and the older, smarter students, often teenagers, taught the younger children.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/One-room_school
A typical school day was 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., with morning and afternoon recesses of 15 minutes each and an hour period for lunch. "The older students were given the responsibility of bringing in water, carrying in coal or wood for the stove. The younger students would be given responsibilities according to their size and gender such as cleaning the black board (chalkboard), taking the erasers outside for dusting plus other duties that they were capable of doing."