For one day, two third-grade classrooms from Southeast Elementary School in Sycamore stepped back in time at the historic North Grove School to experience what it was like to learn and play in a one-room schoolhouse in the 1800s.

The visit was part of a field trip this week arranged between the North Grove School Association and Sycamore School District 427.

Southeast Elementary School third-grade teacher Jami Sauber said her end goal with organizing the field trip was simple.

“What I’m hoping to achieve is to show others in the community that this valuable piece of history is here,” Sauber said. “A lot of people, I don’t think, realize that this is here and this is an authentic one-room schoolhouse. We like to bring our kids here to then enjoy this gem of history. ... But then it’s also really cool to show the kids what life was like and really how lucky we are to have the life we do.”

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Southeast Elementary School third grader Cooper Tillman (right) says the Pledge of Allegiance in class Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025, during a field trip to North Grove School, a one-room schoolhouse from 1878 in Sycamore. (Mark Busch)

The two classrooms of students were divided into four rotating sections for a day at the one-room schoolhouse, 26745 Brickville Road in Sycamore.

The school day consisted of a lesson in arithmetic, a spelling bee, recess and lunch, all of which were experienced in 40-minute intervals.

Upon arrival, students filed in two lines and took a bow to greet their teacher.

“We try to make it as authentic as possible,” Sauber said of the experience.

In keeping with the spirit of the day, some were dressed in clothing reminiscent of the era.

Sauber admitted it took some time to ensure the experience for students was authentic.

“I tried to do my research,” she said. “I’ve watched lots of videos on one-room schoolhouses.”

“[I]t’s also really cool to show the kids what life was like and really how lucky we are to have the life we do.”

—  Jamie Sauber

Saubers’ classes have a long history of taking to the one-room schoolhouse. But this year was the second time she’s brought third graders.

This week, Sauber’s class was joined by the students of Jon Walter, another third-grade teacher at Southeast Elementary School.

Sauber said she enjoyed taking part in the experience.

“It’s a little different for me because I am very much a teacher that tells jokes. and I’m very funny,” Sauber said. “Teachers back then were very serious. So, it’s a little bit different for me to be serious.”

Origin story

The origin of the one-room schoolhouse dates back to 1878, when it was built in support of Swedish culture and efforts to maintain that among children in the North Grove neighborhood, historical records show.

That tradition would persist even after DeKalb County community schools approached the school board in 1880 and asked to buy the property to use the space to host classes. More recently, in the 1970s, the one-room schoolhouse was used as a neighborhood community center.

The building, which has seen a pair of additions added over the years, is now considered property of Sycamore School District 427. One addition created a foyer at the entrance to the one-room schoolhouse. Another added a museum to the space.

North Grove School Association treasurer Mary Swedberg said portions of the schoolhouse hold true to the building’s original condition, from the clock and chalkboard to the map.

Along one of the walls in the one-room schoolhouse is a framed picture of one of Swedberg’s descendants, Andrew Swedberg.

Andrew Swedberg is pictured in the image along with several others who are believed to have been part of the school board for the one-room schoolhouse.

Museum exhibit

In the back of the building is a newly added museum featuring an exhibit called “Gathering Around the Table.”

It has a home thanks to the North Grove School Association and was created by the DeKalb County History Center in collaboration with the Smithsonian Institution.

The exhibit, which spans the decades from 1870 to the present day, highlights what lunch in a cafeteria looked like for schoolchildren.

Swedberg said she thinks it makes for a nice addition to the schoolhouse.

“It offers a little more additional information about what it would have been like to have gone to school here,” Swedberg said.

Also displayed in the museum are classroom furnishings from a number of different local manufacturers spanning the eras.

Swedberg pointed to how furnishings in schools back then were commonly dependent on ironwork.

“Depending on who was manufacturing, they’re quite a bit different,” Swedberg said. “Some are very plain, and some are quite ornate.”