My Year in a One-Room Schoolhouse

As a young girl I was fascinated by pioneer times and the settlement of America. The one-room school houses of Laura Ingallsand Anne Shirley transported me to another place and time. Are the days of the one room school house in America over? According to NPR, in 1919 there were 190,000 of these schools. Now there are less than 400. Read more about America’s One-Room Schools, here.

For the past year, I’ve been teaching ten sisters in a one-room school house. Our classroom is the enclosed verandah located at the entrance to their home. My favorite part of the day is the morning meeting where we review the calendar, have Bible and Social Studies lessons, and I read-aloud to them from library books. The Davis sisters pile onto the living room couches beginning their day together. We are joined by their older sister Prossy, who studies with her mother, and younger sisters Grace and Patricia who aren’t yet old enough for school.

Social Studies and reading review are great opportunities for cross-level learning. Paired reading between an older sister and a younger are confidence builders for both ages. The most challenging part of teaching students ages 7-12 is keeping one group of students engaged while another group is working on a different subject at a different grade level just across the classroom.

Each student had previously been enrolled in Ugandan schools. This was the first time they encountered American learning styles and schooling from home. The younger girls overcame barriers with my American English, and the older with a change in instruction and curriculum. It is amazing how resilient kids are. I thought it would take them months to adjust to so many new things all at once, but they jumped in and adapted quickly to the new school set-up. Our year together has given me an appreciation and insight into Ugandan culture that only quality time with children can give. Last August they met me for the first time and have undergone a journey that has involved being stretched and shifted in many ways. I am incredibly proud of my students and the progress they have made. Although our year of learning together is soon coming to an end, to them I will always be, Teacher Candice, and no matter how much they grow they will always be my students.