Some local

students spent a couple of days in the 19th century last week.

The Little

Patriots History Club, a group of homeschool students who meet each week

to study history together, spent a day and an evening at Southern Oaks

in Fayetteville under the tutelage of Michele Cox, owner of Victorian

Adventures.

Jamie Peavy,

who runs the Little Patriots History Club, signed up the group at the

conclusion of its unit on the Civil War.

The students

spent a day learning about life in the 1800s, Cox said. The lessons included

clothing such as top hats for boys and bonnets for girls customs unique

to the time period. Cox even brought in a special guest to talk about

soldiers and how they lived and worked.

The next day,

the students and their parents came back for an evening program where

the students displayed what they had learned. The evening ended with a

ball, and the students showed off the dance skills they had acquired,

and Cox even taught the parents a step or two.

Cox, who has

done this program before a the Teaching Museum in Hapeville, said this

was the first time she tried it at Southern Oaks and she was very pleased

with the outcome.

A second homeschool

group is scheduled to come in today for a "Life in the 1800s"

program, and another is planned for next month.

Also on the

horizon are week-long summer Victorian day camps, for which signups begin

in March. Dates and other information are available at www.victorianadventures.com.

Southern Oaks,

at 240 North Jeff Davis Drive, is also available for private parties and

other special occasions. Several Girl Scout and Brownie functions are

scheduled to take place there in the coming weeks, Cox said.