At age 87 my recollection about
that one-room school are not too vivid. One thing that
I do remember is a very large black wood stove. Those
who sat near the stove roasted (it seemed) and those further
away were cold and wore sweaters!
One
of the fathers started the fire each morning and one
of the older boys put in chunks of wood to keep it going.
I also remember it was necessary
to combine grades in certain subjects as much as possible,
often it could be in English, History, Geography and
Spelling. Sometimes it was in Reading however, if there
was a first grader you had to teach the pupil beginning
Reading. Sometimes you could get a fifth – sixth
grade student to go on and help the 1st and 2nd grade
students.
It seems to me you had to be
very creative in order to teach in a school of that
size. When the day ends you often felt frustrated because
you could not accomplish all yu had hoped to!
I loved teaching and children.
I married and had three children who all taught in Torrington
High School. They are all retired and I am grandmother
to four and a great-grandmother to four girls and one
boy. Fortunately, my health is fairly good and my husband
and I can enjoy family life.
