I don't know what "Go to the cloakroom right now"
meant when you were growing up, but when Mrs. Fingelrud said it to me,
it didn't mean I had forgotten to hang my coat up. From arriving early
to light the stove to staying late to wash off the blackboards to
hauling up the drinking water to organizing the annual community
Christmas program, the one-room school teacher was really a
jack-of-all-trades and a master of all! Oh yes, she also
taught...all subjects and most ages, and often these teachers were
still in their teens and living with a family of strangers. (Later
on teachers could have had a little 'relief' if they hadn't been so
serious
about being good role models. They could have taken a whiff of the
fluid
used in the mimeograph machines and had a little buzz going for a
while,
but I don't suppose the students showed them how).
Country
School
Memories
by Bonnie
Hughes Falk (Minnesota)
This
book is exactly what the title says. Falk has compiled many short
memories from people, both pupils and teachers, who experienced the
one-room school first-hand. Heartwarming and often humorous, the
recollections summon up often fond thoughts about long walks in all
kinds of weather, skunks and snowstorms, the smell of wet mittens
drying on a wood-burning stove, syrup pail lunches, and especially the
bonds of early and lasting friendships. Although this book is not new
(copyright 1986), the number of people contributing makes this one of
the most inclusive on the subject of country school life.
ED
2 - 9 Paperback $8.95
Florence
by Audrey Wendland (Minnesota
and North Dakota)
In
1912, seventeen-year-old Florence Thompson, a "high-spirited girl
who had to make her own way in rapidly changing times," accepted a
position as the teacher at "the worst country school in Swift County,"
Minnesota. This is the story of her triumphs and tribulations as she
lived among Norwegian immigrants in Minnesota and North Dakota during
the horse and buggy era. Her experiences are vividly brought to life
by Audrey Wendland, Thompson's daughter.
ED
2 - 10 Paperback $15.00
One-Room
Country Schools
by Jerry Apps (Wisconsin)
Subtitled 'History and
Recollections from Wisconsin,' this book combines memories of pupils,
recollections of teachers, historical facts, pictures and even an
appendix about 'Recess Games.' More than just one person's
memories, this book is a good resource for anyone studying the history,
success and impact of these institutions.
ED 2 - 11 Paperback $18.95
They Called Me Teacher by
Tom Melchior (Minnesota)
Subtitled 'They Called Me Teacher: Stories of Minnesota
Country School Teachers from 1915-1960', this book is truly a tribute
to the teachers of the past. It contains their stories -- funny and sad
-- their pictures, their hopes and successes. It's clear why this book
received a Merit Award in History from the Midwest Independent
Publishers Association.
ED 2 - 12 Paperback $19.95
Stone Johnny School by
Erling Rolfsrud (North Dakota)
In a delightful homespun way
Erling Rolfsrud relates his experiences as a teacher in a one-room
schoolhouse on the prairie of North Dakota, including teaching the
beautiful 'Palmer Penmanship Method' to students whose hands were more
at home with a gopher trap or pitchfork.
R 1- 05 $8.95
Order by
using the 'Place an
Order' form or you may order by
phone (800 494-9124). For payment and shipping charges, see 'Place an Order.'
Country
School
Memories
by Bonnie
Hughes Falk (Minnesota)
Florence
by Audrey Wendland (Minnesota
and North Dakota)
One-Room
Country Schools
by Jerry Apps 
