Bridges Elementary School Visits Harrisburg Elementary
On Oct. 27th, 2015, four first grade classes from the Bridges School of Prairie du Sac visited our Harrisburg-Troy one room school house to learn what it was like to go to school “way back then”. When asked what the learning objective might have been for the first graders to be visiting our school, one of the teachers, Mrs. Cheryl Sprecher, answered with these remarks. “Our classrooms were all studying pioneers and long ago concepts of life, survival and changes. We explored differences and similarities on how life is today compared to when there was no electricity, cars and technology. Education and learning in one room schools was a topic that came up often. The visit to Harrisburg School was a meaningful field trip for the children. Sitting in the desks listening to many of the routines of a one room school life was interesting to them as they made connections to their own learning and classroom situation. “
The 4 classes were broken into 2 groups of 2 classes each. Group one started their visit in the upstairs main room of the building. As the teacher read from
a booklet entitled "A Visit to a One Room School" the children learned that the schools back then were very different from the schools now days, such as:
The 2nd group went to the basement where they watched a video recording of people who used to go to that school when they were elementary school children. The kids loved hearing about how the boys once chased the teacher around the classroom with a dead squirrel, or how a live mouse jumped out of one boy’s lunch box when he opened it up (who put that in there?). They also heard that the only toys the students back then had at recess was a ball and a bat so they played games like Pom Pom Pull Away, Red Rover, Red Rover, or Anti-i-Over.
After the video the children were allowed to look at the many antique items, not necessarily school related, found on display in the school basement. Those items brought up many more questions about life “back then”.
Upon their return to their own classroom the children had many questions and comments for their teacher. Below, Mrs. Sprecher tells us about some of those very interesting and observant discussions;
“When the children got back to school we had time to write in their learning journals. Many wrote about the desks in rows, the bell and how there weren't many books. Some of the children thought it must have been very fun going to school in one room and only having a few kids in a grade. They thought that must have made school easier. Several children shared that they felt there are too many kids in our school. I remember that was a big discussion among my 6 year olds. They also found the two doors going out of the school, one for the boys and one for the girls interesting. I remember one of my boys asking me why schools changed. He told the class he would like going to school in a one room school. Some of the children thought it was being fixed up so kids could go to school there.
As a parting comment, Mrs. Sprecher noted something that we all know to be very true. She said “First grade children are so joyful with great ideas!”
If you would like to visit our one room school house, or if you have a classroom that would benefit from visiting us, please call Carol Anderson, HTHS Board President, at (608)-546-5194 and she’d be more than happy to add you to our visiting/tour schedule once the weather warms up. Oh, and just a friendly reminder...don’t forget to visit our website at www.harrisburgtroyhistoricalsociety.org or simply Google “Harrisburg Troy Historical Society”.
Special thanks go to 1st grade teacher Cheryl Sprecher of Bridges Elementary School in Prairie du Sac for her help in providing the pictures and much of the information for this article.
On Oct. 27th, 2015, four first grade classes from the Bridges School of Prairie du Sac visited our Harrisburg-Troy one room school house to learn what it was like to go to school “way back then”. When asked what the learning objective might have been for the first graders to be visiting our school, one of the teachers, Mrs. Cheryl Sprecher, answered with these remarks. “Our classrooms were all studying pioneers and long ago concepts of life, survival and changes. We explored differences and similarities on how life is today compared to when there was no electricity, cars and technology. Education and learning in one room schools was a topic that came up often. The visit to Harrisburg School was a meaningful field trip for the children. Sitting in the desks listening to many of the routines of a one room school life was interesting to them as they made connections to their own learning and classroom situation. “
The 4 classes were broken into 2 groups of 2 classes each. Group one started their visit in the upstairs main room of the building. As the teacher read from
a booklet entitled "A Visit to a One Room School" the children learned that the schools back then were very different from the schools now days, such as:
- There was a boy door and a girl’s door for coming in and going out of school,
- Their bathroom was outside in an “outhouse”,
- The whole school was made up of only one room that had kids of all ages and grades in it.
- Kids brought their own lunches from home in an old pail or metal bucket.
- Music class consisted of conducting a rhythm band of homemade instruments and singing along with the band.
- A hectograph was used to duplicate papers.
The 2nd group went to the basement where they watched a video recording of people who used to go to that school when they were elementary school children. The kids loved hearing about how the boys once chased the teacher around the classroom with a dead squirrel, or how a live mouse jumped out of one boy’s lunch box when he opened it up (who put that in there?). They also heard that the only toys the students back then had at recess was a ball and a bat so they played games like Pom Pom Pull Away, Red Rover, Red Rover, or Anti-i-Over.
After the video the children were allowed to look at the many antique items, not necessarily school related, found on display in the school basement. Those items brought up many more questions about life “back then”.
Upon their return to their own classroom the children had many questions and comments for their teacher. Below, Mrs. Sprecher tells us about some of those very interesting and observant discussions;
“When the children got back to school we had time to write in their learning journals. Many wrote about the desks in rows, the bell and how there weren't many books. Some of the children thought it must have been very fun going to school in one room and only having a few kids in a grade. They thought that must have made school easier. Several children shared that they felt there are too many kids in our school. I remember that was a big discussion among my 6 year olds. They also found the two doors going out of the school, one for the boys and one for the girls interesting. I remember one of my boys asking me why schools changed. He told the class he would like going to school in a one room school. Some of the children thought it was being fixed up so kids could go to school there.
As a parting comment, Mrs. Sprecher noted something that we all know to be very true. She said “First grade children are so joyful with great ideas!”
If you would like to visit our one room school house, or if you have a classroom that would benefit from visiting us, please call Carol Anderson, HTHS Board President, at (608)-546-5194 and she’d be more than happy to add you to our visiting/tour schedule once the weather warms up. Oh, and just a friendly reminder...don’t forget to visit our website at www.harrisburgtroyhistoricalsociety.org or simply Google “Harrisburg Troy Historical Society”.
Special thanks go to 1st grade teacher Cheryl Sprecher of Bridges Elementary School in Prairie du Sac for her help in providing the pictures and much of the information for this article.
