Traveling Trunk artifacts connect students with learning tools of the past

What was it like to go to school in Warwick a hundred years ago? What tools did students use to learn? 

Park Avenue’s first-graders had a hands-on glimpse into the classrooms of yore during a social studies lesson brought to life by the Warwick Historical Society’s Traveling Trunk program. 

Throughout the school year, local historians bring the “Traveling Trunk” into Warwick Valley’s classrooms to support social studies learning standards through the students’ interaction with primary historical sources.

When the trunk creaked open in Park Avenue’s first-grade classrooms this week, students uncovered an oil lamp, old photographs, quill pens, an historic “cyphering” (math) book written with a quill pen, a stereopticon (a precursor to slide projectors), and writing tablets made out of slate. 

Following the lesson and their engagement with these artifacts, students pulled out their Traveling Trunk journals to reflect on their learning experience.