Body Work: Childhood, gender and school health education in England, 1870—1977

This article focuses on a neglected topic in the historical sociology of childhood, namely health education, and explores a neglected theme, namely the gendered character of (re)constructions of childhood. Drawing on primary sources, the article argues that while health education for children played an important role in a broader set of British national, political strategies to ensure the health and fitness of `the Nation' during the 20th century, it was girls who were the primary targets and recipients. Gender was thus central to the `body work' in childhood that the official publications on health education sought to promote.