Simple but Meaningful Classrooms

Shawnee School in the winter with icicles hanging off the side of the roof and school children in the doorway about 1940.

The inside of these schoolhouses was simple—rows of wooden desks filled a single room, a blackboard hung at the front, and in one corner sat a potbelly stove, struggling to keep the space warm during Colorado’s freezing winters.[1] The cold was a constant challenge, and students had to dress for survival. As Andy Anderson remembered, “Everybody wore long underwear. You couldn’t make it otherwise because you only had a potbellied stove to keep you warm in the school. But it was difficult. You didn’t worry what you looked like, because everybody looked alike, overdressed.”[2] 

Entriken Cabin stove.

Even though these classrooms were plain and had few supplies, they were filled with eager students ready to learn. Lessons were taught with whatever materials were available, usually just a few shared books, slates, and pieces of chalk.[3] Still, the children didn’t let that stop them—they knew education was their key to a better future. Desks were often handmade, sometimes even carved from logs, and students wrote with whatever they could find, whether it was charcoal, slate pencils, or ink made from crushed berries.[4] A single teacher was responsible for teaching every subject, adjusting lessons to fit the different ages and abilities of the students. Even with few resources, these dedicated teachers made sure learning never stopped. So when new books or supplies arrived, the excitement was real. As one teacher from the Como school put it, “Books—No one except a teacher or a pupil can realize how grateful one can be for such an addition to school equipment.”[5] The high school students were especially thrilled to receive new bookkeeping supplies—a small upgrade that made a big difference in their learning experience.