A Glimpse of Our Educational Past Discovered During Oklahoma School Renovation

The online magazineSlate this week provided readers with a fascinating view into America’s educational past. Workers renovating a high school in Oklahoma City came across a number of blackboard lessons that had been frozen in time. The blackboards, which had been covered by new chalkboards in 1917, still retained lessons and drawings on math, reading, music, handwriting, personal hygiene, pilgrims, and God. These lessons, now almost a century old, were discovered while the workers were installing smartboards in the school.

The vibrant drawings make going to school in 1917 look more fun than you might think. The Oklahoma City School District is debating what to do with the well-preserved slate blackboard drawings and lessons.