1910 Rose Hill School

I will preface this blog by saying that I really didn't want to go on this field trip. The idea of attending a day in the life of a school kid in 1910 was low on the list of 100 things I need to do before I die.

I was pleasantly surprised.

Rose Hill is in Perry, Oklahoma, about 1.5 hours to the west of Tulsa.

L-R: Rachel (my kid), Mrs. Eddy (4th grade teacher), Grace (BFF)

The trip was to start at 7:10.  All the kids got there in time.  They were all dressed in the attire of the time. Well, actually a littler earlier than 1910, but who's really checking. Some of the kids had serious outfits, while others (my kid) had to make do with what was in their closets.  They all carried lunch baskets or pails, and all of them quilted a square of fabric to cover their food.

The bus was late.  But not by too much.  All of us clambered on board and settled in our seats, only to have the driver announce she didn't know where she was going.  Uh-oh, this doesn't bode well. All of us adults(3), but not the driver, were madly looking for directions.  We found them and were on our way.  Time-wise, we got there before 9, so all is good as class didn't start until 10 AM, which allowed plenty of time to peruse the small museum and for the kids to hand over money to the gift shoppe ladies. 

Bridge of Time back to 1910

Then it was time to cross the 'bridge of time' to 1910.

Miss Rupp instructing

Let me pause at this point to say Miss Rupp, the schoolmarm, didn't put up with any guff.  The girls lined up and seated according to height, and then the boys. After the Pledge of Allegiance, it was time to practice our handwriting with a pen and nib.  And yes, I said 'we'.  There was one seat left. Mrs. Eddy had done it before, so it was up to Mrs. Lee or myself.  It was decided when the schoolmarm said she would be grading our writing on a higher scale than the kids.  Mrs. Lee frantically waved for me to participate. 

Me with pen and nib

I did.  It's harder than it looks.

Class continued with orthographyy (spelling) and arithmetic. 

My kid paying attention

And then lunch!  My daughter was assigned to get water with a boy.  We all washed up and ate our possibly contaminated food at our desks.











The Flying Jenny

 At recess, the kids tried the Flying Jenny.

Geography and the spelling bee were after lunch.  Two boys co-won the contest, surprising the schoolmarm.  And then it was the obligatory $10 picture time.  I refused to pay for it, so I started taking pictures. 

Now, this was AFTER Mrs. Eddy informed me that no one was supposed to take the class pictures EXCEPT the schoolmarm . . . oops. NOT.

The 4th grade class of 1910

It wasn't until I started using Mrs. Eddy's camera did I get reprimanded.  Her camera bings when a picture is taken, so I was caught, she gritted out that we were NOT supposed to take pictures.  I responded, "I'm sorry, Ma'am, I didn't know." lying through my teeth the entire time. :-)

Then it was time to take the bus home.  And in those 4.5 hours when we were in 1910, did the bus driver inquire about directions home?

NO!

During the trip home, it turns out 16 of the 25 kids brought their Nintendo DS and they were playing Pictochat.  We arrived back at school 20 minutes before school let out. 

All in all, it was a good day.  I really enjoyed the experience.  And most of all, the kids were pretty good.

And that was how I spent last Wednesday.

Later, Peeps!