Deerfield-Windsor School students participate in annual Patriot’s Day

ALBANY – Deerfield-Windsor Lower School students, teachers and parent volunteers immersed themselves in U.S. colonial history during the school’s annual Patriot’s Day Thursday. 

The event is a longstanding tradition at the school and is the culmination of an all-subject, fifth-grade curriculum called “Why America is Free.” This curriculum is funded by the Albany Chapter of the Colonial Dames, a women’s organization of descendants from British North America. 

“The fifth-graders are excited for it (Patriot’s Day) each year,” Marie Knight, the DWS Lower School director, said. “The younger students look forward to becoming a fifth-grader so they can participate in it.” 

The students arrived for the unique school day at the Exchange Club Fairgrounds dressed in colonial-era clothes. The boys sported tricorn hats, stockings and knee breeches. The girls wore flowing skirts, petticoats and bonnets. 

They had their portraits taken in colonial attire and began their day playing colonial games like hop scotch and ring toss. The boys and girls separated for separate lessons – while the boys learned to march in the militia, the girls learned how to sew and embroider. 

The later afternoon would see the students creating colonial crafts and watching a blacksmith’s demonstration. 

But school staff and parent volunteers agree that the most special part of Patriot’s Day is the night events. This elusive event is the school community’s best-kept secret as they aim for full immersion and surprise for the students. 

Everyone will gather at a grand, old Southern home where an orchestra and parent volunteers dressed as “redcoats” and “patriots,” riding horses and acting as spies, will await them. 

“It makes it really real for them, the danger and the fact that we did pay a high price for freedom,” Tammie Bumgardner, a DWS Lower School social studies and reading teacher, said. 

Bumgardner teaches an expansive curriculum on colonial history, including patriot life, the Revolutionary War and important figures during this time. Students also have learned about art, science, music, trades and customs of U.S. forefathers.

Bumgardner starts teaching this curriculum during the spring of the students’ fourth-grade year.

“I try to start in August with the French and Indian war because it sets the whole stage for the idea that the war debt gets great, and it leads to taxation without representation, “ she said. “Then, I tie it to what’s going on now, because so much of our arguments now are over taxation.”

Bumgardner even implements a taxation system in the classroom with fake coins. Students will walk into class one day, and it suddenly costs them a coin to use a chair or a computer. 

“We make it very arbitrary,” she said. “They think they have like 10 coins for the whole four days, but then all of a sudden the cost of a chair or using their laptop will go up to five coins. They learn a lot about money, but they also learn about these arbitrary taxes that can change at any time.”

Bumgardner said this curriculum and finale event make the students fall in love with history, and they carry that love throughout the rest of their schooling. She said this time period in U.S. history is essential to understand.

“It shows the transition from a colonial empire monarchy to the system of government we have today, and it shows them why it’s so important and worth fighting for even now,” she said. “We have a system where no one is above the law, even the president. The colonists were determined to never have a king again.” 

Shena Pippin wore colonial garb to volunteer as her son participated in the militia training. This is her third year volunteering and her third child to attend Patriot’s Day. She said her son has been talking about the different roles he’ll get to play for a week leading up to the event.

“This is my favorite thing I volunteer for all year long,” Pippen said. “The teachers do such a fabulous job. It’s a whole semester of learning, and then they get to put everything into practice.”