A Day in the Life of a Pioneer
K-2 students at Northstar Christian Academy got a taste of pioneer life. First, the young students were introduced to this historical time period in their classrooms. Next, students were highly engaged in some very authentic learning experiences on their field trip to the Genesee Country Village and Museum in Mumford. Imagine the surprise of our young students when participating in this living history museum, as:
…Landon was sent to sit on the girls’ side of the one-room school house for neglecting to add “ma’am” at the end of his response to the pioneer teacher’s question. He also had to ‘don the schoolmarm’s bonnet for this serious infraction!
…the boys learned that they are totally responsible for hauling in the large, wooden, heavy water bucket for use as the classroom “drinking fountain” of the day. Of course, the entire class of up to sixty K through 8th grade students also shared the one and only drinking mug for dipping into the bucket when quenching their thirst!
…Jayla was ordered to press her nose into the blackboard while remaining on her tippy-toes along with also holding a pile of books behind her back – all for arriving to school just a few minutes late!
Humor aside, our young learners were truly intrigued with the pioneer way of life as their day continued to unfold with learning even more, including:
how important farm animals were for survival during pioneer times.
live demonstrations on how much time it took and all the special equipment that was used for farming, preparing, and cooking food during pioneer times.
how pioneer children entertained themselves with homemade toys and games.
how news was spread with using the printing press of the time.
and so much more…
Our students had a very full day with participating in many of the hands-on learning activities and were extra thankful when returning to their contemporary classrooms and the many modern day conveniences they showed renewed appreciation for!
