Minuet and Feast

Here is our fine Town Crier, Mr. Michael Brown, giving us plenty of news and entertainment for our Colonial Days. He kept us informed about all manner of news including a runaway cow, births of babies, and even slaves who had escaped from their masters. Each student enjoyed having a colonial name.
A feast of turkey, sweet potatoes, green beans, stuffing, homemade rolls, bread pudding, cobbler, pies, and cake were enjoyed by students, parents, administration, and enrichment teachers. The students had colonial conversation and manners. What a delight to watch!What wonderful dancers they were at the minuet The parents clapped and snapped cameras while the dancers twirled around the gym. Charming!
Though very tired, the class commented that they wished Colonial Days lasted longer. Their journals are full of their impressions from three full days unlike any other they have ever had. Huzzah (Hooray) for Colonial Days 2010!

Johnny Cakes and Fried Apples

Johnny Cakes were a cornmeal type of pancake eaten by the colonists. The students had to first grind the corn prior to making the batter for their tasty treat. Yummy!
The fried apples were prepared by first coring their apples and then adding sugar and butter to fry up a sweet treat. The aroma throughout the hall was delightful.

Colonial Days

We started our day with a formal tea that included scones, clotted cream, butter, jam and piping hot tea.
Our ladies in waiting were beautiful!

"Shall I have one or two sugar cubes?"
What handsome gentlemen!

Chalk Spelling

Taking advantage of our pleasant fall weather, we headed outdoors to practice our spelling words for this week. Each student grabbed a piece of chalk, a section of pavement, and away they went writing out antonyms. Who knows... without any rain in the forecast, the lower grades just may have an opportunity to practice reading some of our words at recess.

Colonial "Twenty Questions"

Our colonial unit has begun! Included in this multi-faceted study, we play a daily game called "Twenty Questions". The students are shown an object from the 1700's and are asked to guess what it is. Our first object was the bird bottle that Brooklyn is holding. It was mounted to an exterior wall of a home, kitchen, or stable and served to control the insect population. Small birds, such as wrens, find these to be quite cozy places to build a nest.
On another day, we had to guess this earthenware object that Grant is holding. This is actually a Thumb-Controlled Watering Pot and a student was able to figure out what purpose it had. The pot is immersed in a bucket of water to fill it, and by holding one's thumb over the top hole, the pot can be carried around to water plants in the ever-popular colonial gardens. When the thumb was released, a steady stream of water could flow from the tiny holes on the bottom of the pot. Pretty cool invention, don't you think?