Taught to the tune of a hick'ry stick

According to its website, the Country School Association of America is "for people who wish to preserve schools, create or maintain museums, promote living history programs, and allow children of all ages to experience schooling as it was many years ago." CSA will hold its 8th annual conference June 16 at Miami University in Oxford (Butler County), Ohio. They're still open to presentation proposals, and entries in the contest for best essay, book, web site, thesis, or video on any aspect of country schooling (prize $300) .

A highlight of the conference will be a visit to the William Holmes McGuffey Museum. McGuffey taught at Miami U. from 1826 to 1836 and wrote the first four of his famous readers there. Among other things, the conference site links to a male-line genealogy of McGuffey, which does at least have footnotes.