This is Story #19 in the Harry Forbes Remembers Series. This story comes to us from his sister, Helen Hoszouski.
Added to all the work teachers had in a one-room school on the prairies, they also had school parties to plan for.
The highlight of the school year was the Christmas concert. The schools in our area (northwest of Maple Creek, SK) were located about four miles apart, so the teachers tried to arrange it so no two adjacent concerts were held on the same night. People not only attended their own concert, but also others in nearby schools if weather permitted.
About six weeks before Christmas, the teacher would peruse play, song, recitation and drill books. Items must be chosen that would give every one of the students a part in the program. Each role was copied by hand, usually by the older students, and distributed to the actors.
Practices started out quite relaxed, but gained in intensity as the concert day neared. Some students could learn their parts quickly, while others couldn’t or wouldn’t do so. I’m sure this must have been a very stressful time for the teacher. There were costumes to be made with the help of the mothers. A platform would be constructed by the men. Curtains, most likely someone’s bedsheets, were hung and all was in readiness.
The parents, squeezed into the desks, looked on proudly and clapped vigorously as each performance ended. It didn’t matter if words were forgotten or roles bungled. The children knew that Mom and Dad were proud of them for making an effort to do well.
A Christmas tree, with real candles burning, stood in a corner, with men standing by watching vigilantly. It amazes me now to think of how dangerous that was, but fires seldom occurred. Santa came and distributed candy bags, maybe apples and oranges to the kids and usually a gift for each one. The school board would have supplied enough money to buy a gift for each child. (This was accomplished by sending a list of ages, sex and names of the students to the Eaton company. Their clerks would make the appropriate selections and mailed the parcel back to the teacher.) The ladies served coffee, accompanied by sandwiches and cake to round out the evening.
In the early years we all arrived and left by team and sleigh. We snuggled down in the hay in the bottom of the box and were covered with blankets. Dad had to stand and face the weather to do the driving. The horses were tied and blanketed through the evening.
Second in importance was Valentine’s Day. Starting soon after Christmas, every student spent much time making valentines, ideally one for each of the other students. There might be a store bought one for the teacher. Much ingenuity surfaced in this work. Eaton’s used to put out a book eight inches by ten inches with samples of all their wallpapers; these had been ordered ahead of time. The sheets became to basis of many cards. With scissors, lacy designs were cut in folded white paper. Crayons and watercolors were put to use.
When the big day arrived, the five-year-old brothers and sisters were brought to school to join in the fun. The teacher or someone would have decorated a shoebox to be used as a mailbox. Everyone’s valentines were placed inside. After lunch hour, the party began. The mailman delivered the valentines and then games followed. Pin the tail on the donkey, musical chairs and poor pussy were some that were played. By the time that was over, everyone was ready to partake of the goodies which the mothers had provided.
The autumn brought Halloween. We made masks for ourselves, again using our own inventiveness. Games filled the afternoon and always included bobbing for apples either in a washtub of water or dangling on a string. With hands tied behind our backs, we’d try to bite into an apple. Again there were goodies.
There was usually a picnic for the last day of school in June. Outdoor games included a ball game, various races and contests. We were always greatly pleased when our younger siblings, mothers or fathers could attend the picnic and take art in the activities.
There were many action games that we played at home and with which we entertained ourselves at recess and noon hour at school: anti-i-over, pom-pom-pull-away, various forms of tag, crack the whip, fire on the mountain, skipping rope, hide and seek, duck on the rock, mother may I?, and hop scotch to name some of them. None of them required equipment except a ball, a piece of rope and a bunch of energetic kids. All ages took part up to and including those in their early twenties.
Softball filled many of the breaks at school and at home when families visited. Since enrolment was often small, sides, when chosen, might be made up of only seven or eight players ranging in age from six to sixteen. We were very fortunate at our school in that we had two bats, a small one and a regular-sized one. We may have had a catcher’s mitt later on, but I don’t remember having one. When we got a new ball, catching it was very hard on the hands.
We would play with the current ball until the sewing was worn out. Someone would take it home and re-sew it with harness thread. That would do for a time, but then the cover would be loose again. The ball would go through many of these operations, with the centre becoming softer and softer, until eventually it got to the point that when hit, it went flat and flew like a Frisbee. At that time we would ask the school board for a new ball. They might or might not have money to provide one. Softballs probably cost less than a dollar.
During the 38 years the school was in operation, many students attended, not only conquering the lesson material, but also being taught respect for all people and their property, responsibility, self-reliance, ingenuity, and loyalty to the king and country.
This structure, the result of much planning, sacrifice and labor of our forefathers, was very much the hub of the community. Besides school, it’s where residents in the surrounding area gathered for meetings, for entertainment and often to be instructed in the Word of God at church services.
Regrettably the enrolment dropped and larger school units came into being. Now those important buildings have passed into oblivion. The spot that for 38 years rang with many children’s voices and resounded their footsteps, now lies deserted, except for a rock memorial and marble plaque that was planned and erected by former students. For those of us who spent many years at rural schools, no memorial is necessary. We hold the memories in our hearts.