WELCOME!

WELCOME! I used this blog to share our family's homeschooling thoughts and experiences. Our oldest child, EL, finished her formal education in May 2017, and we graduated our son, JJ, from High School in May 2021. I will leave this blog up for anyone who wishes to read our curriculum reviews or see what types of field trips and/or activities we participated in.

Saturday, April 7, 2018

APRIL 2018 FIELD TRIP: Lincoln Log Cabin Live-in Program

Yesterday was the 3rd year JJ participated in a "live-in" program with our homeschool group at LINCOLN LOG CABIN STATE HISTORIC SITE. This was his last year to participate due to aging out, but he has really enjoyed this program. The students are dressed in period clothing and are "transported back in time" to the year 1845. The girls wear dresses and aprons while the boys put on work shirts. They spend a couple of hours performing duties and chores that were typical on an 1840s farm.

Here is where the students start out. They are told the rules, and then dressed in their costumes. Several families had to cancel this time, so there were only 4 boys and (I think) 9 girls. In previous years, we have had up to 15 or more in each group.

The boys pushed a wagon over to the stable to load dirty straw onto. This is a working farm with real animals, so the chores are real, also.

Here are two of the boys using pitchforks to load the straw. JJ is on the right.

After the straw was loaded, they pushed the load down the sidewalk and took it to a place to dump it.

Another chore for the boys was carrying wood from the wood shed to the wood box inside the cabin. The boys were also allowed to saw wood using a two-man saw, but I didn't get a picture of that chore.

Here is JJ carrying wood into the cabin where the girls have a fire going and are working in the kitchen. 

The girls were nice and warm inside the cabin, making Johnny Cake for us all to try. EL was asked if she wanted to participate, and she said no, but we stood in cabin for awhile to watch what they were doing. She's the one in the hat.

The boys are taking turns dipping candles. The girls did this also. When they were finished, each student was allowed to take home one candle as a souvenir.

JJ and a friend are carrying a heavy bucket of spikes, which were needed for the next chore of splitting a log.

The boys are lined up and taking turns hitting the spike with a sledge hammer.

JJ is taking his turn with the sledge hammer. This was his favorite chore.

It was a chilly day, but at least the sun was shining. JJ's arm muscles were sore the next day, but he was happy to have taken part.