Rural School Days: Kansas in 1920 - Kansas Museum of History
Guided tour — Kansas Museum of History, Topeka
Grades — 4th-5th (4 hour program); 1st-6th (1 hour program)
Located in Jackson County, Kansas, the one-room Stach School was restored to its 1910-1920 appearance and moved to the grounds of the State Historical Society in the early 1980s. It is representative of thousands of country schools that dotted the landscape generations ago. A scenic quarter-mile nature trail through tall-grass prairie connects the school to the Museum of History.
The full program in this authentic one-room school offers fourth and fifth grade students a unique opportunity to experience history. This four-hour program is a living history activity. The Stach school teacher meets the students at the Museum of History and walks the class to the historic Stach School.
The schoolteacher then leads simultaneous lessons in recitations, arithmetic, geography, reading, and orthography. Students act as "pupils" of seventy years ago, sit at wooden desks, practice their penmanship using pen and ink, participate in a spelling bee, and maybe even get in a game or two of "Drop the Handkerchief." Each child receives a copybook and certificate.
We hope students will enjoy this program that was designed to provide them with an understanding and appreciation of our rural school heritage.
Kansas standards addressed but not necessarily fulfilled by this program:
2nd grade history: Benchmark 2, Indicator 1: The student compares and contrasts daily life of an historic Plains Indian family, a pioneer family, and a modern family in Kansas.
Cost: $5 per student (One adult enters free for every 10 students. Additional adults pay the student rate.) This fee does not include Museum admission.
Length of tour: four hours
Number of students in a group: minimum of 10, maximum of 25.
Hours: 9:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Registration and scheduling: Rural School Days can only be given Tuesday - Friday. Register online, or contact Education and Outreach at 785-272-8681, ext. 414; e-mail education@kshs.org. Tours must be scheduled at least two weeks in advance.
Short Program
Length of tour: one hour
Number of students in a group: minimum of 10, maximum of 25
Hours: 9:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1 p.m.
Cost: $2 per student. (One adult enters free for every 10 students. Additional adults pay the student rate.) This fee does not include Museum admission.
Registration and scheduling: Rural School Days can only be given Tuesday - Friday. Register online, or contact Education and Outreach at 785-272-8681, ext. 414; e-mail education@kshs.org. Tours must be scheduled at least two weeks in advance.
Remember to make your reservation early for either of the Rural School Days programs because demand is higher in April and May. Tours of the Stach Schoolhouse are given on an "as requested" basis.
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