If you were picked to be a page you would start at the age of 7. You would leave your parents' house and live in the house of a knight or nobleman. As a page you would learn how to fight with your shields and your weapons. You would be taught manners and correct behavior.

Squire

When you turn 17 you would then become a squire.  You would learn to use weapons like maces, swords, lances, bows, longbows, and spears.  A squire would help a knight put on his mail and the rest of his armor. A mail is like a shirt made of metal loops, all put together. That's a lot of metal!   He also took care of the knight's horse.

A squire would help a knight put on his armor like this coif.

Knight

In becoming a knight, you would be tapped on each shoulder during a ceremony with a sword. Once you become a knight you'd ride into battle, attend parties, hunt on the lord's land, and get a profit on the lord's land.  You might also get a wife and then your sons would do the same thing that you did in becoming a knight. If you were a page or a squire and saw a knight walking toward you, you would address him in a proper manner.

This is a knight in full armor.

Armor

Before a knight goes into battle or goes to a game, he puts on his armor. First he gets his squire to put on his cloth bonnet on his head, a laced padded jacket, a bandage around his knees, and his chain mail that has to be heavy. The chain mail is to keep a sword going threw the body of the knight.  To make things heavier, they had armor. This included a helmet, cauldrons to cover their shoulders, couleurs to protect their elbows, and gauntlets over their hands . Cuisses were to protect their thighs, poleyns or knee guards protected their knees, greaves cover their shins. Padded metal shoes protected the knight's feet.

Close up of chain mail

Armor also protects in jousting tournaments.