Three retired teachers — Linda Clements, Beverly Smith, and Nancy Sherwood, all members of Clark County Retired Teachers, teach in the school — which offers a turn of the century learning experience field trip.
These experienced educators take turns being the school marm and enjoy showing students how their great great grandparents learned how to read and write. They also show students that some things have changed, and some things haven’t. Throughout the day efforts are made to keep lessons within the state benchmarks and standards.
According to Clements, the Advanced One Room School House was built in 1878 at a time when Ohio built one school every three miles across the state.
“You can still go 3 miles in different directions and find the old schools,” she said. “Some are houses or some are empty. All have the same brick pattern on the front.”
(There is still one on Rebert Pike, and there is one that is converted into a home in New Carlisle.)
Students arrive at 9:15 a.m. dressed as students long ago did. Guidelines for clothing and lunches are distributed to schools and parents before the event.
“The boys love wearing those suspenders,” said Clements.
Every student starts out the day with a booklet to record their work. In the morning the students work on their reading, writing and arithmetic just as they did 100 years ago.
“We do a lot of work out loud in groups,” Clements said.
After a historically inspired sack lunch, (no bags of chips or juice packs here!) they will study formal writing using script, or construct a timeline to learn the temporal relationship of one historical event to another.
Students depart in time to catch their buses home at their modern schools.
The Advanced One Room School will be open for 10 weeks in the fall and 10 more weeks in the spring.
Quite a few Clark County schools have reserved their day, but there are still a few days available. The opportunity is there for public, private and home elementary schools. Call 937-845-1734 or visit http://www.cccconsortium.com/providers/clark-county-retired-teachers-association-advanced-one-room-school/ for more information.
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