Island Students Explore Pioneer Life
By Leslie Rott

Kindergarten student Nicholas Davis and second grader Octavia Valencia squeeze blueberries to make ink.

After traveling the Oregon Trail, students in kindergarten through third grades arrived at Apple Valley pioneer school Tuesday, May 2, to learn how to make ink from blueberries and other handy lessons from the pioneers. They were given feathers to use for writing and then made the blueberry ink.

To make blueberry ink, they crushed blueberries with the back of a spoon, strained the liquid from the skins, then mixed in salt and vinegar.

The quills held only a little ink, so repeated dipping into the ink well was required. Most of the students agreed that writing with the quill pen was not the neatest or easiest way to write.

Other aspects of pioneer schooling included a session in the corner with a dunce cap for students who disobeyed the rules, and learning that girls didn't always get to go to school, and if they did, they were educated separately from the boys, a discovery that pleased the boys.

Vicki Urman, who teaches kindergarten and first grade, said first graders will write reports about what they learned and present them at the social studies fair Friday, May 19.

Third grader Mackenzie Bean and kindergartner Nicholas Pokora write with blueberry ink and quill feather pens.

Second grade teacher Laura Eiseler said the pioneer lessons reinforced why small classes are an asset to Mackinac Island Public School. They allow the two teachers to combine their classes and work together.

The experience also encouraged students to learn outside of the classroom. One second grader read the entire Laura Ingalls Wilder "Little House" series to learn more about pioneer life.

Other activities included exploring the schoolroom at Fort Mackinac, keeping a journal about their experiences, making pioneer bonnets, and writing on a slate with charcoal. Throughout the unit, children were divided up into families, in which they spent time doing various group activities.

The six-week pioneer program is offered on the Island every two years.