# One room country school



## zogman (Mar 20, 2002)

Don't ask me why, but my wife and I were comparing notes on education.
We both went to a rural school in ND. Back then we were really mistreated. we had to memorize poetry :lol: So we both started remembering some of the same poems. Anyone else that mistreated in grade school :lol:

Hope some of you old duffers enjoy :wink:

Paul Revere's Ride
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere,
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year.

He said to his friend, "If the British march
By land or sea from the town to-night,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light,--
One if by land, and two if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm
Through every Middlesex village and farm,
For the country folk to be up and to arm."

Then he said "Good-night!" and with muffled oar
Silently rowed to the Charlestown shore,
Just as the moon rose over the bay,
Where swinging wide at her moorings lay
The Somerset, British man-of-war;
A phantom ship, with each mast and spar
Across the moon like a prison bar,
And a huge black hulk, that was magnified
By its own reflection in the tide.

Meanwhile, his friend through alley and street
Wanders and watches, with eager ears,
Till in the silence around him he hears
The muster of men at the barrack door,
The sound of arms, and the tramp of feet,
And the measured tread of the grenadiers,
Marching down to their boats on the shore.

Then he climbed the tower of the Old North Church,
By the wooden stairs, with stealthy tread,
To the belfry chamber overhead,
And startled the pigeons from their perch
On the sombre rafters, that round him made
Masses and moving shapes of shade,--
By the trembling ladder, steep and tall,
To the highest window in the wall,
Where he paused to listen and look down
A moment on the roofs of the town
And the moonlight flowing over all.

Beneath, in the churchyard, lay the dead,
In their night encampment on the hill,
Wrapped in silence so deep and still
That he could hear, like a sentinel's tread,
The watchful night-wind, as it went
Creeping along from tent to tent,
And seeming to whisper, "All is well!"
A moment only he feels the spell
Of the place and the hour, and the secret dread
Of the lonely belfry and the dead;
For suddenly all his thoughts are bent
On a shadowy something far away,
Where the river widens to meet the bay,--
A line of black that bends and floats
On the rising tide like a bridge of boats.

Meanwhile, impatient to mount and ride,
Booted and spurred, with a heavy stride
On the opposite shore walked Paul Revere.
Now he patted his horse's side,
Now he gazed at the landscape far and near,
Then, impetuous, stamped the earth,
And turned and tightened his saddle girth;
But mostly he watched with eager search
The belfry tower of the Old North Church,
As it rose above the graves on the hill,
Lonely and spectral and sombre and still.
And lo! as he looks, on the belfry's height
A glimmer, and then a gleam of light!
He springs to the saddle, the bridle he turns,
But lingers and gazes, till full on his sight
A second lamp in the belfry burns.

A hurry of hoofs in a village street,
A shape in the moonlight, a bulk in the dark,
And beneath, from the pebbles, in passing, a spark
Struck out by a steed flying fearless and fleet;
That was all! And yet, through the gloom and the light,
The fate of a nation was riding that night;
And the spark struck out by that steed, in his flight,
Kindled the land into flame with its heat.
He has left the village and mounted the steep,
And beneath him, tranquil and broad and deep,
Is the Mystic, meeting the ocean tides;
And under the alders that skirt its edge,
Now soft on the sand, now loud on the ledge,
Is heard the tramp of his steed as he rides.

It was twelve by the village clock
When he crossed the bridge into Medford town.
He heard the crowing of the cock,
And the barking of the farmer's dog,
And felt the damp of the river fog,
That rises after the sun goes down.

It was one by the village clock,
When he galloped into Lexington.
He saw the gilded weathercock
Swim in the moonlight as he passed,
And the meeting-house windows, black and bare,
Gaze at him with a spectral glare,
As if they already stood aghast
At the bloody work they would look upon.

It was two by the village clock,
When he came to the bridge in Concord town.
He heard the bleating of the flock,
And the twitter of birds among the trees,
And felt the breath of the morning breeze
Blowing over the meadow brown.
And one was safe and asleep in his bed
Who at the bridge would be first to fall,
Who that day would be lying dead,
Pierced by a British musket ball.

You know the rest. In the books you have read
How the British Regulars fired and fled,---
How the farmers gave them ball for ball,
>From behind each fence and farmyard wall,
Chasing the redcoats down the lane,
Then crossing the fields to emerge again
Under the trees at the turn of the road,
And only pausing to fire and load.

So through the night rode Paul Revere;
And so through the night went his cry of alarm
To every Middlesex village and farm,---
A cry of defiance, and not of fear,
A voice in the darkness, a knock at the door,
And a word that shall echo for evermore!
For, borne on the night-wind of the Past,
Through all our history, to the last,
In the hour of darkness and peril and need,
The people will waken and listen to hear
The hurrying hoof-beats of that steed,
And the midnight message of Paul Revere.


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## fishhook (Aug 29, 2002)

In 10 or so years we might just be back to one romm country schools. My wife and I talked about this the other day. What's stopping it right now?? My belief is the thought of retracting back to the early 1900's has people scared, but it probably makes the most sense considering the commute a lot of rural kids have. Maybe i'm wrong, but i could definatley see them making a comeback in a few years.


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## Remmi_&amp;_I (Dec 2, 2003)

fishhook said:


> In 10 or so years we might just be back to one romm country schools. My wife and I talked about this the other day. What's stopping it right now?? My belief is the thought of retracting back to the early 1900's has people scared, but it probably makes the most sense considering the commute a lot of rural kids have. Maybe i'm wrong, but i could definatley see them making a comeback in a few years.


I don't think it could ever happen with the whole "No child left behind" Act. I have friends that are teachers in small communities. One of them teaches a subject that he has a minor in, been teaching it for 7 years or so and now they want him to go back to school because he apparently doesn't have the knowlege base to teach it. I'd wager that after 7 years of teaching a subject, you'd know it pretty damn well...........but what do I know!?!!?!??!? :-?


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## buckseye (Dec 8, 2003)

Homeschooling works great too, but it takes parents who want to be involved in their kids education.


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## fishhook (Aug 29, 2002)

Remmi & I,

My wife is a teacher and has first hand knowledge of the "no child left behind act."

The problem is, in north dakota expecially you cannot get teachers as qualified as the act requires to teach in a small school in some small town. It is just not feasable for small town schools and it has already been attacked by certain groups.

The theory behind the "no child" act is good. But as some north dakota politcal leaders have argued, it needs some tweaking. Some of the older teachers have already got exemptions and I wouldn't be surprised if small town teachers get the same before long.


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## zogman (Mar 20, 2002)

How in theeee he## did we go from good memories of time spent in a one room county school house to No Child Left Behind in only four posts????????? :eyeroll: :bop: :shake:


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## Roughrider (Apr 12, 2005)

Zogman, were you born and raised in Concrete? Just wondering. I know at one time the town had a lot of residence and today doesn't really even exist. If so, when did the school close? Did it even have a high school?


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## Roughrider (Apr 12, 2005)

Zogman, were you born and raised in Concrete? Just wondering. I know at one time the town had a lot of residence and today doesn't really even exist. If so, when did the school close? Did it even have a high school?


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## Dick Monson (Aug 12, 2002)

Zoggy, thanks for the memories, I was there too.

"Under the spreading chestnut tree, the village smithy stands.."

" The corn is turning yellow and the leaves are turning brown, the trees in apple orchards with fruit are bending down."

Good times. We had 16 kids in one room, 2 in each class and the best teacher in ND. Her name was Evelyn Sundstrom.


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## zogman (Mar 20, 2002)

The last year for the Concrete grade school was 1960. The district was split 1/2 to Walllhalla, 1/2 to Cavalier. I ended up in Cavalier.

Dick, Just for you 

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - The Village Blacksmith

Under a spreading chestnut-tree
The village smithy stands;
The smith, a mighty man is he,
With large and sinewy hands;
And the muscles of his brawny arms
Are strong as iron bands.

His hair is crisp, and black, and long,
His face is like the tan;
His brow is wet with honest sweat,
He earns whate'er he can,
And looks the whole world in the face,
For he owes not any man.

Week in, week out, from morn till night,
You can hear his bellows blow;
You can hear him swing his heavy sledge,
With measured beat and slow,
Like a sexton ringing the village bell,
When the evening sun is low.

And children coming home from school
Look in at the open door;
They love to see the flaming forge,
And hear the bellows roar,
And catch the burning sparks that fly
Like chaff from a threshing-floor.

He goes on Sunday to the church,
And sits among his boys;
He hears the parson pray and preach,
He hears his daughter's voice,
Singing in the village choir,
And it makes his heart rejoice.

It sounds to him like her mother's voice,
Singing in Paradise!
He needs must think of her once more,
How in the grave she lies;
And with his haul, rough hand he wipes
A tear out of his eyes.

Toiling,--rejoicing,--sorrowing,
Onward through life he goes;
Each morning sees some task begin,
Each evening sees it close
Something attempted, something done,
Has earned a night's repose.

Thanks, thanks to thee, my worthy friend,
For the lesson thou hast taught!
Thus at the flaming forge of life
Our fortunes must be wrought;
Thus on its sounding anvil shaped
Each burning deed and thought.


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## dogdigger (Jan 26, 2004)

i must have eaten to much paste back in the day because i dont remember anything but the first line of these poems.



mark


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## Goose Guy350 (Nov 29, 2004)

I know this is off topic but everyone that posted seems pretty in tune with the school systems. Where I am from the school district is hurting for money big time and have laid off some teachers and cut the public bussing system which in my mind is a huge mistake. I am born and raised on a small farm out in the country and know that there are a lot of days I wouldn't have gone to school if the bus didn't come get me. In general the school districts do not seem to be doing good in the Upper Pennisula.

Anyway, the reason for my post is how are the school districts doing out there and are there many teaching positions open?


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## Dick Monson (Aug 12, 2002)

Zog, thanks. I remember when there actually were blacksmiths.

GG, the rural districts out here are drying up. Teachers being laid off left and right. Dismal--no kids left in the country.


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## redlabel (Mar 7, 2002)

We just spent the day walking the Freedom Trail and saw the sights mentioned in Paul Revere's Ride. The Old North Church, Faneuil Hall, The U.S.S. Constitution, (Old Ironsides), and many other sites. It is so much fun to visit these places that we studied so much about in school.

Tonight we will go the the Union Oyster House where you can sit and eat oysters at the same Oyster Bar that Daniel Webster frequented almost every day.


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## Springer (Dec 21, 2004)

Dick Wrote


> I remember when there actually were blacksmiths.


That is really dating yourself, but I'm impressed you remember blacksmiths and can use a computer.
I can barely get my dad to use his cell phone and he still can't figure out his voicemail yet. He's 60.


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## Remmi_&amp;_I (Dec 2, 2003)

fishhook said:


> Remmi & I,
> 
> My wife is a teacher and has first hand knowledge of the "no child left behind act."
> 
> ...


My pops is a principal here in ND so I have heard many conversations regarding this topic. They won't exempt the small town teachers because they are either young enough to take summer classes and not feel "weird" about it, or they have enough years experience and can put together a "thesis" on their knowlege of the subject matter.

There are many VERY GOOD teachers and there are many VERY BAD teachers. I wouldn't mind paying them more if they got paid on how good they were rather than how many years they have been there.


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## tail chaser (Sep 24, 2004)

Buckseye said:


> Homeschooling works great too, but it takes parents who want to be involved in their kids education.


 Good piont but I would say thats true for any type of education.

TC


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## fishhook (Aug 29, 2002)

Remmi_&_I said:


> fishhook said:
> 
> 
> > Remmi & I,
> ...


AMEN to that. Not too many careers you can be tenured and suck and still get paid as much as someone who does a steller job and is working their tail off.

This is another example of the government trying to do something right and poorly executing the plan. ex....the test the government want's teachers too pass is a joke. For example, why does an english teacher need to be an expert of calculas or trig? And I really feel bad for the 40-45 year old teacher who has been teaching for years and is now getting drilled.

This act (in my opinion) is designed to stop teachers with a english major teaching science or math. It also is designed (from what i have seen) for larger city schools with absolutely no thought for smaller communities.

I will be somewhat surprised if this thing isn't revised in the next couple years or even scrapped and a new plan taking over in a few years.

But then again....who am I...I've been wrong before.....just once.


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## adokken (Jan 28, 2003)

I started going to a one room country school in 1931, Still remember my teachers name. Also how cold the school was in the winter. The school is still there on my property. the progress in the world since those days is hard to comprehend.


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