Presents a brief history of the one-room schools that existed in the United States from the 1700s to the 1950s.

Have you ever wondered what it was like to attend a one-room school, to be in the same classroom as your older brother or younger sister, or to have your teacher live with your family for part of the school year? In One Room Schools, Susan Apps-Bodilly chronicles life in Wisconsin’s early country schools, detailing the experiences of the students, the role of the teacher, and examples of the curriculum, including the importance of Wisconsin School of the Air radio programs. She describes the duties children had at school besides their schoolwork, from cleaning the erasers and sweeping cobwebs out of the outhouse to carrying in wood for the stove. She also tells what led to the closing of the one room schools, which were more than just centers of learning: they also served as the gathering place for the community. Susan Apps-Bodilly drew from the research compiled by her father Jerry Apps for his book, One-Room Country Schools: History and Recollections. Apps-Bodilly has geared her book toward young readers who will learn what students and their teacher did on cold mornings before the wood stove warmed them up. They also will find out how to play recess games like Fox and Geese and Anti-I-Over and will learn the locations of 10 former one room schools that can be toured. Apps-Bodilly also encourages readers to ask themselves what lessons can be learned from these early schools that have application for today’s schools? One Room Schools will transport young readers back in time and make their grandparents and others of that generation nostalgic—perhaps even prompting them to share memories of their school days.

Text and pictures bring to life days at a one-room school in northern Vermont which has been functioning for more than 100 years.

Stephens, the daughter of the schoolteacher, details the experiences and challenges faced by Helen Hussman Morris as a teacher in rural Oklahoma during the Depression era. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

The purpose of this book is to showcase K-12 unique and educational significant activities that we may all learn from. The essays in the book, under girded by sound research, highlight remarkable activities that are already taking place around the world. The essays offer a detailed description of a classroom or a school; provide an interpretation of what is taking place in this setting and why; and inform readers about what can be learned from the setting. Some readers will appreciate the vivid descriptions, which will encourage them to push their own thinking. Others may learn from the author’s discussion of essential ideas from the essay, which can be reflected upon and tranferred into other situations. All readers are likely to appreciate hearing about the varied and creative activities. The stories of these noteworthy teachers fall into four categories: risk-taking, creativity, care and community, and interconnectedness. Within these themes are ideas that teachers can use to create their own remarkable classrooms. Each theme is discussed and then several examples of how the theme plays out in the educational setting are described.

This newly revised edition describes how building a school was a priority once an early community became established. Students of all ages shared one teacher and the same four walls year after year. A One-Room School describes how the teacher, a respected member of the community, was entrusted with the responsibility of teaching reading, �riting, and �rithmetic. Children will enjoy seeing inside a one-room schoolhouse and discovering: what subjects students learned, how children were disciplined by the teacher, games boys and girls enjoyed during recess, games, songs, and activities they can participate in.

The story of Montana's one-room schoolhouses, as recollected and recounted by those most intimately connected to those places, is the story of the American frontier and the high value placed on education by those who came to homestead, mine, or work the railroads. It is a story of the Western spirit and of a culture marked by tenacity and endurance. These stories told by students and teachers, many of whom are now in their eighties or nineties tell of adventures traveling to and from school, the school day, recess games, family life, daily chores, and above all, the sense of community, as defined by these iconic humble schoolhouses. Their voices share memories and perspectives about a way of life, gone for the most part, and breathe life into these visions of rural heritage. The preservation of one-room schoolhouses is important, as they are among Montana's first frontier structures. These treasures inform us about ourselves our history and our culture through the people who learned and taught in them. One hundred percent of the net proceeds of this book will be donated to the Preserve Montana Fund, a campaign of collaboration between the Montana Preservation Alliance, the Montana History Foundation, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. This donation will serve to create a challenge grant, earmarked for Montana's endangered one-room schoolhouses.