Nuns Punishment with Birch Rod

Corporal punishment was very common in the past, especially in religious school settings. Most people equate this with nuns using a birch rod as punishment. This is not all together true. Rods weren't always made of birch. Some rods were fashioned out of other types of branches, like the hazel rod. Most birches were bunches of twigs that were bundled together and then used for punishment, which could be quite painful. The birch rods were typically applied to the offenders buttocks or legs.