Homeschool group starts school year with ‘Blast to the Past’ event

MAYBEE – A ringing bell signified the start of school. Students scrambled to get in line. One by one, they marshalled into the one-room schoolhouse. One girl wore a bonnet. Another wore a straw hat adorned with flowers. Several students carried lunch pails made from tin cans with jute rope handles.

Writing on slate with chalk and learning how to fold paper into cups was part of Wednesday’s “Back to School Blast to the Past” event for members of the Homeschool Wayfinders Community, a private group of homeschool families from Monroe and Wayne counties.

Close to 100 homeschooled children, grades K-12, attended afternoon activities at the historic McGowan Schoolhouse in Maybee. Heather Parker, director of the group, worked with Fred Monteleone, president of the Exeter Historical Society, to coordinate the first-time event.

Despite some wet, humid weather, at 11:30 a.m., students gathered in the school yard for lunch before breaking into groups for 30-minute lessons in gardening, weaving, farm equipment and farm animals.

Parker served as teacher for the day. She has been homeschooling her children for 11 years. Her son, Kaden, will graduate in the spring of 2024. She also has two daughters. Victoria is a sophomore and Clara is in eighth grade.

Wearing a long, blue, cotton dress, Parker welcomed students as they entered the school while “Principal Monteleone” rang the bell. A bucket of apples sat on the corner of the teacher’s desk – an afternoon treat donated by Krep’s Apple Barn in LaSalle.

Inside the small classroom, a wooden slate and piece of chalk had been placed at each desk. As the students listened to Monteleone share stories of the past, 3-year-old Eleanor Winterholler quickly sketched a circle on the chalkboard before adding two eyes and a smile.

Outside were stations where students learned about farm animals and the art of weaving. Artist Susan Hutchinson demonstrated the craft using a spinning wheel. Next to Hutchinson were items she had made and wool samples.

Victoria Romano, 6, and her brother, Dougie, 5, watched as Hutchinson quickly weaved long strands of wool into thread.

Standing nearby was their mother, Carolyn Romano of Monroe, who recently joined the group. This was their second outing.

Mimicking a time when students had to walk to school, the groups trekked along a gravel road to the Exeter Township Historical Museum, at the corner of Sumpter Road and Grant Street, for a quick history lesson.

Stacy Nunn of Exeter Township and Catherine Fix of Monroe greeted students as they entered the museum.

A culinary lesson included a jar filled with whipping cream from Calder’s Dairy in Carleton. The students took turns shaking the jar to make butter while others learned about voting or played piano.

Chase Stefanski, 9, of Wyandotte surveyed the museum before finding some old toys. He found a wooden push toy duck he walked around with while observing what others were doing in the museum.

“I’m in third grade and I’ve always been homeschooled,” Stefanski said. “I like that I don’t have to go to a building for school for eight hours. Learning like this is fun.”

“I grew up watching ‘Little House on the Prairie’ and wanted to let kids experience it in real life. Not on YouTube or just seeing pictures,” said Heather Parker in an email message. “I hope the students see how different life was in the late 1800s and learn that there’s so much to learn from our country’s history.”

The homeschool group, started in 2020, has more than 700 Facebook families. Activities include park outings and nature classes at Crosswinds Marsh.

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For the past few months, Parker and Monteleone worked on organizing the activity.

“The event was planned to educate the children and put them in contact with their past and their heritage,” Fred Monteleone said. “Learning what it was like 100-plus years ago versus how it is today. They are able to experience what their relatives of the past experienced and see how it was for them. … Very few people have the experience of having their first day of school in a one-room schoolhouse.”

Later this school year, the homeschool group will be using the Monroe County Library System to work on a living history research workshop for November. The students will display their research projects and dress as the historic person of their choice.

“Nov. 28, we are blessed to be setting up a Children’s Entrepreneur Fair at The Biddle Hall in Wyandotte thanks to Leah Stefanski,” Parker added. “The owner is opening up her beautiful space for the kids to make and sell their items.”

Homeschool Wayfinders Community is a private Facebook group. Information can be found at www.facebook.com/groups/homeschoolwayfindersdownriver

Any group or organization wanting to know more about the Exeter Historical Society and how to plan an activity can send an email to Fred Monteleone at fredmonteleone@yahoo.com

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Homeschool group starts school year with ‘blast to the past’ event