Block Island School is the only school on the island.
But it wasn't always that way.
"There were five different schools. One down the neck, one west side, one in the gully, one the center and one harbor," said Martha Ball, a year-round resident.
That was until the early 1900s when the system of district schools gradually went away amid advancements in transportation.
"More vehicles, it was easier for people to get a truck to cart kids back and forth," Ball said.
Eventually, the give schools gave way to the Block Island School that exists today. It was built in 1933.
"People didn't have running water. People didn't all have electricity. This school is like a palace. It had hot and cold running water. It had central heat," Ball said.
Since then, the Block Island School has continued to evolve. The most recent addition is a brand new gym.
Over the years, the school has added more teachers, more courses and the latest technology.
"Make this a great learning experience for an isolated community, and we do our best. We also have a virtual high school, which will allow kids to take courses virtually through the Internet," said teacher Kristine Monje.
But there's one course of study that has not changed over the years.
Fourth graders at the school take bird study.
"It started with Elizabeth Dickens who was the bird study teacher in the early part of the 1900s. And her students took over for her, and their students took over them. So the tradition of bird study has been around close to 100 years," Monje said.
Nature, in general, is a big part of the school's curriculum.
"The Nature Conservancy partners with the school and they teach a field biology class. So kids are constantly off site learning about beaches, dune grass, the birds," Monje said.
Pam Littlefield Gasner runs the Block Island Historical Society Museum. She's also a parent of students in the Block Island School.
"My daughter's in fourth grade and just learned to memorize 50 birds," she said. "My son, William, was in the first class in the new high school addition, and it really became like a private school. Beautiful art rooms, science labs, incredible field biology course."
And when is a school more than just a school? When it becomes the centerpiece of tight knit community.
"It's the hub of the community, and many of the activities since we're isolated in the winter, happen through the school," Monje said.
A school that despite its scattered beginnings and rural surroundings, is taking learning into the 21st century.
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