The Frenzy Meets Little House on the Prairie...

So as some of you may know, the most exhausting awesome thing about being the third grade teacher at my school is I inherited the tradition of a day at the Little School House.  The Little School House is part of our local Rural Arts Museum, and is a historic (yet very functional) country one-room school house.  And every year, at the end of the year...when we are all drained of our educational purpose...I muster up the energy to take my students back in time over a hundred years ago...

The students are required to dress historically...including my schoolmarm self!

(How cute are they--seriously?)

And we take our mile-hike to the schoolhouse...rain or shine...this year brought a little rain on the way there. Once we arrive the students leave their lunch pails on front steps and play until I ring the bell.  Once inside they "make their manners" and our day begins!  We try to be authentic as possible...reading lessons from McGuffey Readers, Arithmetic work using slates and slate pencils, 

a Spelling Bee and recititations that they prepared ahead of time, 

old-fashioned games at recess...three of our favorites are Kick the Can, Hide the Handkerchief, and Red Rover...

we also make button toys and cup-and-ball toys...

Regardless of how much work it is, and how exhausted we all are when it is finished, the day is definitely worth it.  There is just something magical about it.  Being on our own, no distractions--no other students, or colleagues, or computers (or electricity), just us...left to appreciate each other with whole-hearted attention is so refreshing.  It's an experience that is hard to explain until you've lived through it.  There is no coincidence that at least half of our 8th graders this year listed "The Little School House" as their most cherished elementary school memory.  It gives the students a taste of everything our modern world has robbed them of...it allows them to simply be...kids...nothing more...and nothing less...