Fourth grade Teacher Karolye Eldridge wrote about an on-campus field trip to the Meeting House, where her class enjoyed nearly a full day of activities centered on Colonial crafts, games and foods. Here is her report:

The fourth grade spends the year studying the changes that took place in Philadelphia from the 1600s to present day. The students, whose lives are presently inundated by technology, get to step back in time and discover what their lives as children might have been like in the 17^th and 18^th centuries.

On December 2, the students began their day by discovering how to make cornhusk dolls. Once the dolls were completed they learned how to use patterns to cut and fabricate clothing from the era to dress the dolls. The students’ opportunities to use their hands to create and strengthen their fine motor skills are not as abundant as they were centuries ago. Cutting, rolling and knot-tying is not as easy as it sounds.

Faculty and parent volunteers worked at five different stations throughout the day, explaining the history of the activities the students were participating in. The children had an opportunity to make tapered candles and measure, mix and cook the ingredients for Johnny corn cakes. They discovered first-hand how difficult it is to write beautifully with a feather quill pen and bottled ink.

The outdoor games were a favorite among the students. They played simple games with wooden hoops and sticks of all sizes. They loved Blind Man’s Bluff and the feel of being blindfolded while searching for a distant voice.

Delicious snacks, cooked and donated by parents and made of recipes from the era, capped off the day of immersion in all things colonial. We are now set to start our research into Colonial trades.