ELK GROVE, CA (MPG) - Did you know there is a kids’ time machine right here in Elk Grove? It’s at the Rhoads School in Elk Grove Regional Park, and the time machine dial is set to return to the late 1880s. 

On Oct. 9, from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., third graders from Raymond Case School were transported to experience a typical school day in the 1880s. 

The children wore period costumes, were assigned a settler’s name and sat in rows of old-style desks. 

Mistress (Lisa) Smith, their teacher, had written rules and lessons on the blackboard in chalk. Reading was their first subject of the day. Next, students struggled to master cursive handwriting. Then, cyphering (math) followed from old textbooks.

The students, instead of feeling ashamed of perching on a stool and wearing a dunce cap, clamored for the chance to wear it. Eli McReynolds (aka Samuel Farmer), one of the students, happily climbed up for his picture to be taken, but had to be told he should look sad.

Play at recess brought out old-fashioned toys, hoops, stilts, marbles and jacks.

Lunches laid out on a cloth on the schoolyard grass and drinks poured into blue enameled cups were part of the fun that Liana Vo, another student, especially liked. 

That afternoon, a spelling bee was held.

According to Susan Hernandez, the current instructor for on-site docents, the journey to provide this time travel experience has been fraught with obstacles.

Hernandez says, “The original school was located near the Consumnes River. The building was flooded, and the school was moved to higher ground.

“However, actual school classes ceased in the 1950s. In the following years the building had other uses, like a daycare center.

“This historic schoolhouse was close to being torn down when the Elk Grove Historical Society stepped in to save it. The foundation of the schoolhouse rests on a dance floor that existed back in the ’40s. Thirty surplus desks were purchased from a high school. Some of the original materials were utilized to reconstruct the schoolhouse as it looked in the past.”

Pictures of the restoration effort, displayed on one wall of the schoolhouse, show the extent of what had to be done to restore the building and the happy faces of volunteers.

In 1977, the Rhoads School was reopened for area schools to visit on field trips, allowing students to experience the history they are studying, particularly about our town.

The participating schools pay a fee of $160 that is shared among the docents who help to create this adventure. 

Transporting students to the location in Elk Grove Park is an additional cost, but teachers think this hands-on experience is money well spent. 

For more information about the Rhoads School Living History Program, visit elkgrovehistoricalso

ciety.com.