THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 30, 1995 TAG: 9504270164
SECTION: CAROLINA COAST PAGE: 07 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ANNE SAITA
STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: MAPLE LENGTH: Medium: 85 lines
THE CHILDREN had struck out with the lock box and cart saddle, but Kim Kunkler thought the next item would be a hit.
``I'm sure you can guess what this is,'' the school volunteer said as she held up the short wooden shovel for all the students to observe.
Anyone who'd ever been a faithful viewer of shows like ``Little House on the Prairie'' would know the device was used to measure sugar and other country store staples.
But that would leave out Chris Frazier and his fellow fourth-graders.
``A dust-buster!'' Chris shouted.
``No,'' Kunkler said. ``It's a scooper.''
Ahhhh, the children said.
Only Chris still seemed puzzled and finally asked, ``Is it a pooper scooper?''
That exchange seemed to say it all during Living History Day last week at Central Elementary School in Currituck County.
``Kids just have no idea what life was like long ago, and this just bridges that gap,'' said Barbara Hudson, a fourth-grade teacher and organizer of the annual schoolwide North Carolina Heritage Week.
Begun with Flag Day on Monday and scheduled to conclude with a special presentation by state Sen. Marc Basnight on Friday, the special week made every one of the 440 students in kindergarten through sixth grade feel good about being a Tar Heel.
This year's ``Life Long Ago'' theme also, in some cases, made the youngsters feel good about being born so late in the 20th century.
Relics like a rusty corn shucker and an old-fashioned washboard were new to the students. Not so for everyone on the outdoor tour of exhibits, held on school grounds and sponsored by the Museum of the Albemarle in Elizabeth City.
``I'm home when I look at that stuff,'' teacher's assistant Jane Gregory, born and bred in the rural county, told another adult as she drifted with her students to another of 10 exhibits Tuesday.
Juanita Powell, with the Moyock Women's Club, also belonged to Gregory's generation but grew up a city girl. Still, she could relate to the hard work as she and high-schooler Lorie Pritchett demonstrated the use of farm implements.
``They didn't have to worry about cholesterol,'' Powell said after helping chisel a hole in a block of wood. ``They could eat all the eggs and bacon they wanted. They would work it off.''
Remarked Hudson, dressed in costume like many of the children: ``They seem fascinated, and they learn that life was a lot harder back then.''
Don Pendergraft, the museum's curator and exhibit designer, was one who helped put grandparents' ``good ol' days'' into perspective.
Pendergraft and a Currituck County High School volunteer primed a pump to draw water, an effort that gave a hint of just how much work went into getting a drink, let alone a weekly bath.
``You think you could do this every morning for the rest of your lives?'' he asked.
``No!'' a group of about 15 kids shouted in unison.
``Water was a rare commodity,'' he continued. ``It still is, but back in the old days, it was a lot harder to get . . . So, you see how good you've got it now.''
Throughout the Maple school were other signs of Tar Heel pride.
Martha Jo Snowden and her husband, John, recycled ordinary household items into miniature lighthouses to decorate about 50 cafeteria tables.
Other lighthouses were visible on hallway displays, as well as a salute to Currituck County's historic jail, Wake Forest University and an amusement park in the western part of North Carolina.
Contemporary heroes and sportsmen extraordinaire Dale Earnhart, Jim ``Catfish'' Hunter and Michael Jordan also were subjects of school projects.
``North Carolina history and heritage is very important to us, and I feel very strongly that our students need to take a glimpse back to the past,'' said Principal Buck Green.
I think that when students have a knowledge of what it was like in the past, they have a greater appreciation of the present and look to the future with greater anticipation.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo by ANNE SAITA
Lorie Pritchett, a junior historian at Currituck County High, shows
how to use old tools and farm implements.
by CNB