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Fairchild Family Stories #2
Schoolhouse in the Woods
The Fairchild family is here again and this time, Bonnie is old enough to begin the great adventure—School! We join Bonnie in the excruciating anticipation of the first day, when she will wear her new dress, carry a first reader and slate, and-displaying nonchalance as she braves the swinging bridge—enter into the mysteries of schoolroom learning and playground rites in a woodland setting of the early 1900s. Bonnie's older brother and three sisters, her various classmates and Miss Cora, her teacher, add their liveliness to an eventful season of learning—on every front—in the Kentucky Hills. Rebecca Caudill's unfailing insights into a child's heart are enhanced by Decie Merwin's skillful drawings.
129 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1949
9 people are currently reading
259 people want to read
About the author
Rebecca Caudill
34 books29 followersAmerican's children writer, as well as teacher and editor, known for her Appalachian fiction. Caudill graduated from Wesleyan College and, in 1922, received her master's degree from Vanderbilt University. She taught English in high school and college, and worked briefly as an editor. She moved to Urbana, Illinois, when she married James Ayars in 1931.
Caudill's book, Tree of Freedom, was a Newbery Honor Book in 1950. A Pocketful of Cricket was a Caldecott Honor Book.
The schoolchildren of her adopted state of Illinois vote each year on their favorite book. The winning book is given the Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award (RCYRBA) named in honor of Caudill and her contributions to Appalachian literature.
Caudill's book, Tree of Freedom, was a Newbery Honor Book in 1950. A Pocketful of Cricket was a Caldecott Honor Book.
The schoolchildren of her adopted state of Illinois vote each year on their favorite book. The winning book is given the Rebecca Caudill Young Reader's Book Award (RCYRBA) named in honor of Caudill and her contributions to Appalachian literature.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
January 20, 2020
I loved this even more than the first book in the series! It is so full of a zest and love for life and learning and I feel that Caudill possessed such a genuine understanding of young people's feelings.
Bonnie is so excited to finally begin school and she can hardly wait for Father to come home with the new school books and slate pencils and her very own slate. Though all but the oldest child will have hand-me-down schoolbooks, the parents always ensure that the newest scholar receives his/her very own brand new first primer and Bonnie is so excited to put her name in hers when Father brings it home.
"[Father] handed Bonnie a new first reader, a new slate, and a new slate pencil. The book was crisp and clean, the slate hadn't a mark on it, and the pencil was long and gray and rounded at the end. Bonnie stood holding them a minute. She wanted to thank Father, but she was so pleased she couldn't say a word. She could only swallow."
"She carried the book, the slate, and the pencil upstairs and put them in her knapsack. Then she slung the knapsack across her shoulder. Wherever she went for the rest of the day, the knapsack with the book, the slate and the pencil inside, went with her.
At sundown, when she went with Althy to the mountain pasture to bring home the knapsack went too. When she carried in stovewood for mother, she slung the knapsack on her back so that it would not get dirty. She ate supper with her knapsack in her lap. [... that night] she laid the knapsack beside her pillow."
Bonnie loves going to school, learning her lessons, and listening to the older children in the one room schoolhouse recite theirs (especially the stories!) "She listened to the second graders read stories from their books. {...] Bonnie sighed happily. School was like a big storybook, she decided. School was like the biggest storybook in the world, and it would go on and on, story after story, until she had heard every story that had ever been told."
Bonnie also loves recess and the many wonderful games they play together, especially those in the playhouse she and the other first graders build under a beautiful old tree. It's also refreshing to see children of different ages playing games together (such as hide-and-seek) and working on the Christmas play together.
The final chapter involves the Christmas play and it's really lovely. Bonnie's thoughtfulness is so sweet. The Fairchilds are a loving family and feel so genuine because they also have their flaws. I highly recommend this series to those who have enjoyed the "Little House" books. My six-and-a-half year old son loved the series, too, and even my four-year-old, who doesn't tend to enjoy sitting for chapter books, has been attentive to these. The accompanying illustrations help for the younger children and they are lovely.
Bonnie is so excited to finally begin school and she can hardly wait for Father to come home with the new school books and slate pencils and her very own slate. Though all but the oldest child will have hand-me-down schoolbooks, the parents always ensure that the newest scholar receives his/her very own brand new first primer and Bonnie is so excited to put her name in hers when Father brings it home.
"[Father] handed Bonnie a new first reader, a new slate, and a new slate pencil. The book was crisp and clean, the slate hadn't a mark on it, and the pencil was long and gray and rounded at the end. Bonnie stood holding them a minute. She wanted to thank Father, but she was so pleased she couldn't say a word. She could only swallow."
"She carried the book, the slate, and the pencil upstairs and put them in her knapsack. Then she slung the knapsack across her shoulder. Wherever she went for the rest of the day, the knapsack with the book, the slate and the pencil inside, went with her.
At sundown, when she went with Althy to the mountain pasture to bring home the knapsack went too. When she carried in stovewood for mother, she slung the knapsack on her back so that it would not get dirty. She ate supper with her knapsack in her lap. [... that night] she laid the knapsack beside her pillow."
Bonnie loves going to school, learning her lessons, and listening to the older children in the one room schoolhouse recite theirs (especially the stories!) "She listened to the second graders read stories from their books. {...] Bonnie sighed happily. School was like a big storybook, she decided. School was like the biggest storybook in the world, and it would go on and on, story after story, until she had heard every story that had ever been told."
Bonnie also loves recess and the many wonderful games they play together, especially those in the playhouse she and the other first graders build under a beautiful old tree. It's also refreshing to see children of different ages playing games together (such as hide-and-seek) and working on the Christmas play together.
The final chapter involves the Christmas play and it's really lovely. Bonnie's thoughtfulness is so sweet. The Fairchilds are a loving family and feel so genuine because they also have their flaws. I highly recommend this series to those who have enjoyed the "Little House" books. My six-and-a-half year old son loved the series, too, and even my four-year-old, who doesn't tend to enjoy sitting for chapter books, has been attentive to these. The accompanying illustrations help for the younger children and they are lovely.
October 27, 2022
What a sweet book! I enjoyed every minute of this charming tale of a little girl's thrill about going to school. Her excitement to read, and to build forts, and catch a wild animal for school were all mesmerizingly charming.
Ages: 4 - 12
Cleanliness: Mentions children playing a game where one of them is a witch - not detailed. Mentions an Indian pipe. "Shucks" is said.
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Ages: 4 - 12
Cleanliness: Mentions children playing a game where one of them is a witch - not detailed. Mentions an Indian pipe. "Shucks" is said.
**Like my reviews? Then you should follow me! Because I have hundreds more just like this one. With each review, I provide a Cleanliness Report, mentioning any objectionable content I come across so that parents and/or conscientious readers (like me) can determine beforehand whether they want to read a book or not. Content surprises are super annoying, especially when you’re 100+ pages in, so here’s my attempt to help you avoid that!
So Follow or Friend me here on GoodReads! And be sure to check out my bio page to learn a little about me and the Picture Book/Chapter Book Calendars I sell on Etsy!
February 19, 2017
First sentence: It was Saturday morning, the last day in July. It seemed like an everyday sort of day.
Premise/plot: Bonnie is the youngest in her family. But she's a baby no longer! Come Monday, she'll be heading off for school along with Debby, Emmy, Chris and Althy. She'll be entering first grade! She'll own her very first book--a reader--her very own slate and slate pencil. There are three other first graders in this one room school house in Kentucky. The book follows the school term: August through December. The book closes with a Christmas play. The teacher is Miss Cora.
My thoughts: Schoolhouse in the Woods is the sequel to Happy Little Family. If you enjoy reading the Little House books OR watching the Little House series, then I'd consider this one a must. It focuses on the one-room school house experience: getting to and from school in all weather conditions, learning lessons and doing recitations, sharing lunches, recess games, school songs, having the teacher stay with them an ENTIRE week. There is a LOT of singing in this one. (Just as there is in Little House). Overall, it is a FUN book for historical fiction lovers of all ages.
Favorite quote:
School was like the biggest storybook in the world, and it would go on and on, story after story, until she had heard every story that had ever been told. (29)
Premise/plot: Bonnie is the youngest in her family. But she's a baby no longer! Come Monday, she'll be heading off for school along with Debby, Emmy, Chris and Althy. She'll be entering first grade! She'll own her very first book--a reader--her very own slate and slate pencil. There are three other first graders in this one room school house in Kentucky. The book follows the school term: August through December. The book closes with a Christmas play. The teacher is Miss Cora.
My thoughts: Schoolhouse in the Woods is the sequel to Happy Little Family. If you enjoy reading the Little House books OR watching the Little House series, then I'd consider this one a must. It focuses on the one-room school house experience: getting to and from school in all weather conditions, learning lessons and doing recitations, sharing lunches, recess games, school songs, having the teacher stay with them an ENTIRE week. There is a LOT of singing in this one. (Just as there is in Little House). Overall, it is a FUN book for historical fiction lovers of all ages.
Favorite quote:
School was like the biggest storybook in the world, and it would go on and on, story after story, until she had heard every story that had ever been told. (29)
January 25, 2023
This delightful story might have been better as a summer/fall read aloud, but reading it in January did not disappoint. We did not start with book one in this series, but we seemed to get enough of the character development to fall in love with the characters.
March 14, 2016
"Bonnie sighed happily. School was like a story-book, she decided. School was like the biggest storybook in the world, and it would go on and on, story after story until she had heard every story that had ever been told."
In the second of the Fairchild Family stories, we follow along as Bonnie goes to school for the first time and we enjoy her wonder and awe as she fingers her own slate, her primer and her first school dress (embroidered with a B).
The theme for this collection of vignettes is school life - and it is a lovely look at playground politics, the games children played, the one room school house style of learning and the dangers of freak storms that wash away the bridge. It is a genuine and lively look at a way of life all but gone today and it captures some of the beauty and magic of that moment.
A wonderful chapter a day read aloud, this is a book which adds to family culture and nourishes our kids with good old fashioned story telling. A lovely book and a keeper for my family library.
In the second of the Fairchild Family stories, we follow along as Bonnie goes to school for the first time and we enjoy her wonder and awe as she fingers her own slate, her primer and her first school dress (embroidered with a B).
The theme for this collection of vignettes is school life - and it is a lovely look at playground politics, the games children played, the one room school house style of learning and the dangers of freak storms that wash away the bridge. It is a genuine and lively look at a way of life all but gone today and it captures some of the beauty and magic of that moment.
A wonderful chapter a day read aloud, this is a book which adds to family culture and nourishes our kids with good old fashioned story telling. A lovely book and a keeper for my family library.
July 4, 2025
A charming story of an Appalachian little girl starting first grade. There's more description than there is plot, but it is good description. I would have loved it when I was little, especially the bits about the playhouse the children build and the games they played, which made me round it up to four stars.
December 5, 2021
A sweet audio book! It made car rides easier this week.
February 26, 2025
A very sweet series so far.
February 1, 2018
I loved this book so much!
Actually Shiv said that she loved this book when she was my age!
Actually Shiv said that she loved this book when she was my age!
October 23, 2025
I read this aloud to Evelyn - age 6
This is a very wholesome, sweet, old-fashioned early chapter book series written in the 1940s by Rebecca Caudill, inspired by her own childhood in the early 1900s.
We’re really enjoying this series and we’ll continue reading the adventures of the Fairchild kids!
This is a very wholesome, sweet, old-fashioned early chapter book series written in the 1940s by Rebecca Caudill, inspired by her own childhood in the early 1900s.
We’re really enjoying this series and we’ll continue reading the adventures of the Fairchild kids!
April 15, 2021
*Review is for all 4 books in Fairchild Family Series*
Rebecca Caudill is perhaps best known for the children's book award named in her honor. Quite a few worthy books have won the Caudill award over the years. This is my first time reading one of her published works. It is a charming tale of a close-knit family in early 1900s America, similar to Anne Pellowski's Latsch Valley Series and Hilda van Stockum's Bantry Bay Series. As always, it's fun to read how kids lived back then before the ubiquitous technology. The books make for good family read alouds.
Rebecca Caudill is perhaps best known for the children's book award named in her honor. Quite a few worthy books have won the Caudill award over the years. This is my first time reading one of her published works. It is a charming tale of a close-knit family in early 1900s America, similar to Anne Pellowski's Latsch Valley Series and Hilda van Stockum's Bantry Bay Series. As always, it's fun to read how kids lived back then before the ubiquitous technology. The books make for good family read alouds.
January 20, 2026
I read this aloud to my daughters ages 7, 11, and 13. They all enjoyed this second book in the Fairchild Family Stories. The Author, Rebecca Caudill, is a Kentuckian and these stories take you to the mountains of eastern KY. Caudill drew on memories of her childhood to create these stories. If you like the Little House series this is a good one to read as well. As my oldest daughter said the two series are similar, but the Fairchild family stories are more what they did and less how they did it. I look forward to reading the last two in the series.
October 19, 2017
Life at school for a first grader in the early 1900s of rural Kentucky is as beautiful and new as nostalgia and perspective combined could make them. Bonnie is the youngest of the five Fairchild children and it’s her first year at school. She begins to learn how to read as well as all the games the children play at recess. Bonnie wants to be good and grow. Her family loves her. There are lessons to learn and growth to accept, but not the intensity of too many modern books written for children.
Yes, life is hard, school can be hard. But both can be good too. The Fairchild family is a breath of fresh air and positive attitudes.
Yes, life is hard, school can be hard. But both can be good too. The Fairchild family is a breath of fresh air and positive attitudes.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 28, 2019
Set in the rural Kentucky mountains in the early 1900's, the book describes experiences of a family during the course of a school year, most especially through the eyes of Bonnie, who is beginning her first year of school. The book will be enjoyed by the same people who love the "Little House" series by Wilder. This book is part of a series called "A Fairchild Family Series" and is well worth owning and reading along with your children.
January 7, 2018
This is the second bok in the Fairchild Family Stories.
And I like this as much as the first one. I always loved school stories, and here Bonnie starts school. I really love how much she loves school, but she is still a believable child character. Caudill has a real knack for writing children.
And I like this as much as the first one. I always loved school stories, and here Bonnie starts school. I really love how much she loves school, but she is still a believable child character. Caudill has a real knack for writing children.
May 29, 2022
Sweet read aloud sequel to The Happy Family. I love stories about the simpler times set long ago . We thought Miss Cora visiting the family for a week was such a foreign concept, and both girls agreed they would love it if that really happened today with their teachers.
January 29, 2018
Is anything by Rebecca Caudill bad? This is a sweet story with gorgeous pictures.
November 11, 2018
An enjoyable read about a family who lives in a simpler place in simpler times.
June 10, 2019
Very cute :)
February 7, 2020
We have read this aloud before, but listened to it on audio this time around. I enjoy hearing the Southern accent of the narrator, I think it brings more life to the story.
April 5, 2020
Sweet and wholesome just like the predecessor. Very low on action (apart from the Chapter with the flood).
June 15, 2020
Wren chose the rating for me on this one. We really enjoyed it. 🥰 And I do think I preferred the second over the first. 🤔 Now onto the third!
June 28, 2022
These books are the sweetest!
December 4, 2022
Sweet story about a family in the Appalachian mountains.
June 8, 2023
Read-aloud. Still can't believe I'd never heard of these books before the last year or so!
December 9, 2023
Lovely wholesome story for children.
December 23, 2023
Read out loud, nice story
March 27, 2024
Bonnie's first day of school is a lot of excitement to her. Bonnie has fun being with the older kids.
November 2, 2024
Another sweet book in this series
March 13, 2022
I had never heard of the book School House in the Woods until one of my friends loaned it to me. What an amazing book about a first grader and her family and the classmates and teacher that she did school with. I loved how full of life they were! So many interesting, little details on their lives and yet not too much that you felt bogged down. My students were so sad that we finished the book up. They loved it a lot and I enjoyed reading it as well!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews