THE ONE-ROOM SCHOOLHOUSE



school

A SCHOOL DAY

1. EARLY MORNING

-get up early
-get dressed
-do the chores
  (gather eggs, feed animals, get wood, milk cows.)
-eat breakfast
-pack a lunch for school
-start out for school


2. GETTING TO SCHOOL

-walk
-ride horseback
-horse and buggy
-catch a ride with neighbours
-go by sleigh (or cutter) in the winter


3. SCHOOL

-teacher rings the bell
-line up (smallest to tallest, boys on one side,
  girls on the other side) and go inside
-hang coats on hooks, put lunch pails on shelf
-song or prayer or pledge to flag/country, attendance
-reading, penmanship (writing), arithmetic, spelling
-lunch (wash hands first)
-recess / play outside
-more lessons
-dismissal (hurry home)

4. BACK AT HOME

-do the chores
-have supper
-go to bed early if tomorrow is another school day


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LUNCH TIME


lunch pail

  • A lunch pail was a can from lard or syrup.
  • The can had a lid and a handle.
  • Food was wrapped in cloth or brown paper.
  • There might also be a tin cup for water.

    tin cup

  • On nice days the children ate outdoors.
    		• WHAT TO PACK FOR LUNCH

    sandwich
    • cold pancakes
    • homemade bread with syrup or lard or butter
    • jelly or jam sandwich
    • meat sandwich (pork, chicken,wild game)
    • Cheese (if the family had cows)
    • dried meat, jerky
    • hard-boiled eggs
    • fruit (apples, wild berries)
    • fresh vegetables (carrots, tomatoes)
    • baking like muffins, cookies, pie, cake
    Some children took a hot baked potato on very cold days. It was a way to keep their hands warm on the way to school. Then they ate the potato for lunch.

    potato

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    A TIME TO LEARN

    books
    • The teacher taught all grades in a one-room school.
    • Older students helped the younger ones.
    • Arithmetic involved counting, number facts and story problems
    • Mental arithmetic was encouraged.
    • Addition, subtraction, multiplication and division tables were practised aloud.
    • Students learned through drill and memory work.
    • Poems were memorized and recited aloud.
    • For reading the students stood and read aloud.
    • Students copied spelling words from the blackboard on to their slates and practiced writing the words over and over.
    • Geography was taught if the school had maps or a globe.
    • Sometimes they would sing songs or have a Spelling Bee.
    • Rules for students

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    A TIME FOR FUN

    snowball fight from wpclipart.com Children played games like Follow the Leader, Blind Man's Bluff, Red Rover, Mother May I and Hide and Seek. They played circle games like Duck-Duck-Goose and Drop the Handkerchief and variations of tag (Freeze Tag, Elbow Tag, Pom-pom-pull Away, Mr. Wolf)

    Older students played ball, dodge ball and Ante Over while younger students played hopscotch and jumprope games. When the teacher rang the bell, students rushed to the door of the school and lined up.

    If the weather kept them indoors, they played I Spy, Simon Says, Seven-Up, Hot or Cold or Who's Got the Button. These are just a few of the games they played.

    In the winter they built snow forts or slid down snow banks. When the yard was covered with freshly fallen snow, a game of Fox and Geese was enjoyed by all.



    next - GOING TO SCHOOL (attendance, transportation)



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    | Early days - an introduction | Coming to Canada | Building a home |
    | Survival - food & clothing | School, general store, blacksmith |
    | Inside a settler's home | Transportation | Fun & games | Pioneer communities |
    | Links | Canada | Web Pages for Students |



    SOURCES for Early Days : ONE-ROOM SCHOOLS


    web page by J. Giannetta
    March 2012





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