THE ONE-ROOM SCHOOL

With the arrival of many settlers in the late 1800s and early 1900s, there was a growing need for schools. Some of the first schools were in homes. People in a community got together and built a school.

The first schoolhouses were built of materials that were available - sod, stone, logs or lumber (boards). The more windows in a school, the more light there was for students to do their schoolwork. If a school was located in a central place near roads, it was easier for people in the area to get to the school.

photos from Celebrating Saskatchewan's Heritage Multimedia Gallery

a log school in northern Saskatchewan LHR-LH-1793

stone school house in Saskatoon (1893)

Handford Schoolhouse made of sod (1907)

Shelby school (1919)

Other buildings like outhouses (toilets), a stable or barn for horses and a shed for wood or coal were also built nearby. Later swings and teeter totters were added to the school playgrounds.

A school was often the centre of activites in a community. Religious services were held at the school before a church could be built. The school was used for meetings, parties, dances, weddings, picnics and other get-togethers.