School Thread (memories and what not)

[repsac]

The crayon thread got me thinking about this, and I thought it might be interesting to have its own little spot to discuss the differences we had in school. Whether it's something downright funny you remember doing, or how much of a little hellion you were; or even how different it seems now, that's what this is about.

I'll start off with one of my own memories. It's a good one, but it does have a bad edge.


Growing up in Mississippi, I fell into a type of program they call the "Gifted" program. I'm not totally sure if they have it now a days, but the thing worked out that if a child's IQ was over a pre set number (mine is 172) then they were placed in this special program that lasted from one to two hours. The program was aimed at giving them the challenge that their minds needed.

I can remember vaguely that while I was in third grade, I was already doing freshman algebra. (Grew to hate it too, just an FYI there) Reading and literature wise, I was reading at around a college level. There was one minor problem.

This program for me, took the place of my third grade math. So while I was learning to think abstractly and learning algebra, I missed out on my basic math. Belive it or not, to this day I still find myself counting on my fingers at times. Addition and subtraction, along with multiplication (at times) gives me fits. It's because I never learned it.

There is a rather funny side to this.

Some of you may have noticed my signature, and likely wondered what it is. It "feels" German, but it's not, just as much as it "sounds" Dutch but isn't.

While I was in these programs, I picked up languages faster than most people pick up phone numbers. My quote is one of them. It's Afrikaans. (Pronounced Ofri Kans) I remember, learning Afrikaans and French at about the same time (maybe a year apart) and driving my teachers nuts when another student who was also in the program with me and I would sit during lunch or recess and babble at each other in our various languages. Typically, if speaking Afrikaans especially, I'd find myself sent up to the principal's office to explain what I did. The principal always got a kick out of it, since she was our Gifted class teacher. Looking back, I rather think she enjoyed annoying the snot out of teachers with our babble.

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I don't speak Afrikaans in public that much any more. I mean, I can still read it (as the signature suggests) but I don't think I've spoken it in more than a year or so.

Now, in case you wondered just what my signature translates to; here's the translation: (part of it is a line from an Afrikaans song)

In tye soos die, word legendes gemaak... Ons sal offer wat jy vra: Ons sal lewe, ons sal sterwe, Ons vir jou, Suid-Afrika.

In times like this, legends are made... We give our all, even our lives if asked; to you, our beloved South Africa.

(NOTE: that is not a literal translation. Literally, it reads like yoda speaks.)

[FormerCallingCardRep]

My very first memory of 1st grade was when a boy by the name of Todd, who sat behind me, decided to use my long braids as paint brushes because he did not want to finger paint.

I had one class my Senior year that I just loved. The class was Local History and Culture. It was so interesting to learn the history of the river valley that I live in.

[myswtghst]

repsac: I was in every Gifted-type program they had, growing up. :) Starting with CLR (Creative Learning Room) in second grade, where I made some great memories--we did extracurricular type projects, and brought them in to show off. My favorite was a big bug project, in which I made a caterpiller 5 feet in length, using carpet padding, twine and spray paint, among other things.

I recently got back into touch with a guy I knew in junior high. He gave me what I consider one of the greatest compliments I've ever received. He told me that I was "the only pretty girl" who was nice to him, as he was rather geeky in jr high. Honestly, it's the nice part that gets me, more than the pretty. :o

[repsac]

Five feet? Wow. My biggest achievement was learning to say the pledge of allegience in French and Afrikaans. To be honest, it translates really wonky in both languages. I think one has '

To these colors I do by right swear

[myswtghst]

I did have help from my mom :o who is awesome in the arts and crafts department.

We had CLR for 2nd-4th grade, Special Opportunities Program (SOP) for 5th and 6th grade, where they combined the smart kids from the district and bussed us all to one school, and then I was "Gifted" in junior high. Funny thing is, to this day, I still contend I'm mostly just ADD. Not that I'm not bright, but my brother is a freaking genius, and was never in the gifted programs at all.

[BookstoreEscapee]

I still count on my fingers, too. When I was in first grade I learned Chisenbop (http://http://www.cs.iupui.edu/~aharris/chis/chis.html). Basically, you can count up to 99 on your fingers; I use it to add and subtract all the time. My brother was only 2 years ahead of me but he didn't learn it.

I wasn't in any gifted program, just a normal kid, but generally got better grades than most. I remember my sophomore high school biology class. I sat in the front, and when he handed back a test the teacher always had his copy on the bottom of the stack, and on the back of that he always made a little graph and put our names corresponding to our grades. My name was always at the top, followed by a gap, most of the class in the middle, then another gap with the few who didn't do so well. (I don't know if he did it on purpose so we could see it, or if he just wasn't thinking about it, but he did it every time.) He also always asked at the bottom of the test how many hours we studied. I always either wrote 0 (the truth) or something like 12,374,239 just to be silly. One kid asked me once how I got As and didn't study, and I just kind of looked at him and said, because while you all are goofing off and talking, I'm actually paying attention...so I won't have to study later! And I was by no means a science/math kid either. I majored in English for a reason! I actually didn't do so well in pre-algebra in 8th grade. It wasn't until I got to 9th grade algebra that I had a teacher who actually made it so I could understand.

[ArenaBoy]

Some of my memories of school:

I am ambidextorous, I use both hands for just about anything be it writing, guitar, cutting food, eating food; anything. At first, everyone including my family thought I was left handed until my 2nd grade teacher noticed something. I do not know why but for some reason I started writing with my right hand and I had no problem at all. My teacher noticed this and told my parents about it. Intrigued, they had me tested to see if I was ambidexterous. I remember the test quite well; they threw balls at me, they made me write with both hands, they asked me questions as to what prompted this. (I always answered I didn't know, I was only 8 at the time.) They just simply accepted that I was ambidextrous and we all got on with our lives.

On a sidenote, my handwriting on both hands is completely different as it looks like one line from one hand was written by a completely different person. My left hand writing (which I write with primarily) is loopy while my right hand is more professional. This came in handy for confusing people, especially teachers and classmates that I hated.

This story is kind of hard for me to tell but I think you'll enjoy it. Throughout my school years I had a friend that I always kept in touch with. This friend was a girl I met when I was 3 and she was my next door neighbor. She is the same age as I am and we got along and we always hung out at school. When I was 10 years old, just before everyone got to experience sadness in terms of friendships, my friend moved away due to her parents divorcing. This was a nice far distance for me also and it was quite hard for me because A. She was my best friend and she still is to this day. B. She was one of the few people who accepted me for who I am. and C. We still kept in touch and we still do. We helped each other through high school and because of talking to her it was bearable. I keep telling her she'd be a good psychiatrist or psychologist.

[Greenday]

12th grade - Fermenting and distilling apple juice in AP Chem.
10th grade - Getting mono, missing 2 full months of school, not losing credit, and doing well on most of my finals. Nice break from school.
8th grade - During the GEPA tests (grade eight performance assessment), my teacher falling out of her chair. I know it sounds cruel, but you just had to be there.

[iradney]

I remember, learning Afrikaans and French at about the same time (maybe a year apart) and driving my teachers nuts when another student who was also in the program with me and I would sit during lunch or recess and babble at each other in our various languages.

O my hemel, jy praat Afrikaans! Jislaaik broer, dis nou spesiaal!
(Trans: Oh my heavens, you speak Afrikaans! Golly, brother, that's very special)

By the way, the Afrikaans song is part of the old South African Anthem.

[NightAngel]

My oldest son was in the program for gifted students before we moved. He had to learn basic math... As a matter of fact if students do not keep a certain grade level in all their basic classes they were dropped from the gifted program.

And, out of curiosity- how do you do Algebra without basic math skills?

[powerboy]

Back in 6th Grade, I was part of this American Indian Group(class). All we had to do was make head bands, and wristbands went on field trips to the caverns near by. Also in 4th Grade, I do believe, I was in a gifted class, because my IQ was one of the best in the school, do not remember the number back then. And all we did was kick back and goof off, in that class. Damn I want my headband and wristband back again.

[Barefootgirl]

I find it very hard to understand how anyone could comprehend algebra without some semblance of basic maths skills. How would you even know where to begin? It doesn't sound like a very well structured "gifted" programme if they couldn't even tell that a child who was purportedly "gifted" couldn't do basic maths.

The extent of my Afrikaans is; jou ma buk vir'renoster. iradney, don't tell !

[iradney]

The extent of my Afrikaans is; jou ma buk vir'renoster. iradney, don't tell !

*gasp* Barefootgirl - Thats beautifully insulting :D

I remember in Highschool, in Grade 9, we had a completely dotty english teacher. She looked a bit like a cockatoo, and made our lessons so fun and easy to remember! We always finished the syllabus about a week ahead of schedule, so she'd pinch the TV from the AV dept and we'd watch Mr Bean. By then of the year, we had Mr Bean memorised! :lol:

[Barefootgirl]

Isn't it a useful insult? Its what the Fezboys (Saracens rugby supporters) shout at useless players and referees. We never, EVER said it to Francois Pienaar, because we loved him when he was with us and he is a living God.

My school never had one of these "gifted & talented" programmes, probably because it was a grammar school, and it was assumed that everyone who could beat off the average of 15 other applicants per place in the English and maths entrance tests and the killer interviews was probably fairly gifted in the general sense. It seemed to work - we managed to average 8 to 10 entrants to Oxbridge every year, out of an Upper Sixth form of 45 girls.

When I was doing Latin GCSE we had a fab teacher who showed us videos of a TV show called Chelmsford 123, which was a comedy show about the Romans in Britain, and the first couple of episodes of which actually had dialogue in Latin! It was brilliant fun.

I do like Mr Bean...

[draftermatt]

I can't really complain about my time in school, but the only thing that will ever stick out is I only ever had two great teachers who made me want to learn. Mr. Holt and Mr. Walker, and I didn't get them until my senior year in high school. I took two classes that year the rest of the time I sat at this same desk I sit at now, but those two guys prepared me for college more than any teacher had prepared me for anything.

[blas]

Arenaboy, I am ambidextrous as well. There is only one thing I cannot do with my left hand though, and that is write. I have never been able to write with my left hand.

I don't have anything to brag about.......I spent kindergarten in special ed.

[reformedwaitress]

I hated elementary school and middle school with a passion. My mother was a teacher and I was reading by the time I was three and doing math before I started school. I also had an older sister so I would learn her work and let's just say I was beyond most of my fellow students. And while the school would let me do some individual work on a higher level, they wouldn't really let me do much or anything really high enough to keep my attention. This caused problems. :lol:

High school however was good. I was in all honors classes and the teachers no longer had to teach to the lowest common denominator. They were fast paced and interesting and I loved them. I was the only Freshmen in AP classes and I was in Junior math classes my first day. It was great.

The best teachers were one of my math teachers (C, he taught me calc and discreet and differential equations) and two of the science teachers (the biology teacher (M) and the chemistry teacher (W)).

During discreet when we were doing "true / false" statements (more complicated than it sounds), he had a deal with us. On the test if we were willing to get EVERY SINGLE QUESTION WRONG (because there was only one of two answers), he would give us a 125 on the test. I was the only person to switch them all and I got a 125 on the test. My final average in that class was over a hundred.

W and M were just nuts. They had both left jobs that paid them much much more to be teachers because they wanted to be teachers. They were very good at getting people interested. I hated science -- always had -- and yet I took AP Chem, AP Biology and AP Physics just so I could be in their classes again. They were great.

I still think my favorite day was playing with liquid nitrogen in W's class. And in M's he used to "play football" with us. When preparing for tests, he'd ask questions and if you got it right, you gained 5 yards (moved up a desk). Got it wrong? Lost 5 yards (moved back a desk). You had 4 chances to go 10 yards. But see here's the thing -- he had a lab in the back of his room. With tables instead of desks. So we would get the answers "wrong" on purpose, just to get to sit back there. I know it sounds stupid, but it was fun.

But seriously, these guys were just really good at what they did. They were really good at making people understand and really GET what they were talking about.

I miss those guys.

[Rapscallion]

When I was doing Latin GCSE we had a fab teacher who showed us videos of a TV show called Chelmsford 123, which was a comedy show about the Romans in Britain, and the first couple of episodes of which actually had dialogue in Latin! It was brilliant fun.


It almost came out on DVD a little while ago as a collected set, but despite me pre-ordering on Amazon, it failed to materialise.

http://www.raretvshows.co.uk/shop/product.php?product_id=CHE-101 - just did a search and found it there - risking a punt for a tenner to get a classic such as that. The site's a touch limited - can't find a search function, and I only found that one through google.

I'll let you know if it turns up.

Rapscallion

[BookstoreEscapee]

8th grade - During the GEPA tests (grade eight performance assessment), my teacher falling out of her chair. I know it sounds cruel, but you just had to be there.

Never took the GEPA tests...you're making me feel old. I remember taking the CAT (California Achievement Test) in elementary school, and the HSPT (High School Proficiency Test) freshman year. We always get parents looking for GEPA review stuff which they never know exactly what they're looking for and there's never much for us to find anyway (though I think there's more now than when I first heard of it).

Arenaboy- my dad is ambidextrous; he writes lefty, eats lefty, but plays sports righty cuz that's just how he learned when he was a kid.

I liked elementary school, HATED middle school miserably, high school gradually got better as it progressed, and college was best.

My sophomore HS US History teacher did exam review by playing Jeopardy. He'd make up 5 categories with 5 questions each, and only 2 per round had anything to do with history. The others were TV, sports, movies, soap operas, whatever. He'd split the class into 2 teams, and each team had a leader who had to watch for someone on their team to raise their hand, then the leader would raise their hand, and whichever leader raised first, their team got to answer.

[rvdammit]

It almost came out on DVD a little while ago as a collected set, but despite me pre-ordering on Amazon, it failed to materialise.


It wasn't too long ago that I read in a paper that Amazon had a book up for preorder. Pity it was a self published limited run, and you could only get it from the authors. And Amazon's discounted price was below cost.

[Rapscallion]

Hmm - I did some poking around and it looks as if the bugger's not actually been produced. I think that's an old page on that site and the fellow's not really there, so I should expect an email and a refund back on the morrow.

Rapscallion

[repsac]

It doesn't sound like a very well structured "gifted" programme if they couldn't even tell that a child who was purportedly "gifted" couldn't do basic maths.


Well, it kinda comes down to the state (mississippi isn't the brightes...(sorry to any from there)) and the simple fact that when you've got a kid like me who learns to speak five languages and read seven, things get lost in the mix.

Personally, my favorite Polish is: Twój waga wie nie bezczelne kłamstwo i twój tył jest bardzo duży.

Literally, it translates to:

Yours tonnage knows not bouncers as well yours rear is not very substantial..


It's nothing but a long way of saying "fat ass."

[myswtghst]

Thought of another memory whilst reading through the thread.

In 7th or 8th grade science, the district superintendent head honcho guy came in and led us in disecting squid. Once we were done playing with the ink and lenses, he chopped them up, pulled out a hot plate, and made us calimari. That was an experience. :D

Also, I think I was one of the few people I know who actually enjoyed high school. I've always been one of those lucky people who knew who she was and didn't much care what other people thought, so I had hair down to my butt, wore whatever I felt like and did whatever appealed to me, which included sports and drama. I was kind of an odd duck, but apparently people remember me (they've all been coming out of the woodwork on MySpace and Facebook lately)

[NightAngel]

Well, it kinda comes down to the state (mississippi isn't the brightes...(sorry to any from there)) and the simple fact that when you've got a kid like me who learns to speak five languages and read seven, things get lost in the mix.

Still doesn't explain how you do Algebra without being being able to do basic math. I really, REALLY want the answer to this question. It makes absolutely no sense what-so-ever.

Personally, I am partial to Latin:

Fere libenter homines id quod volunt credunt, vir sapit qui pauca loquitur.

Or perhaps:
Quantum materiae materietur marmota monax si marmota monax materiam possit materiari?

[Greenday]

And, out of curiosity- how do you do Algebra without basic math skills?

I'm just throwing this out there, basic math skills are algebra. 1+1=? is still considered algebra, they just don't tell little kids that cause it'd confuse the hell out of them. It's just the basics is the most BASIC of algebra there is.

Also, another story from 8th grade. One day in science class, my teacher asked us if anyone knew what the body was made of. My friend replied, "Organs." Didn't even say it as a question, said it as a statement. My teacher took that as a smartass remark and kicked him out of the class. We were all stunned. My friends and I were kids who never got in trouble. It was kinda funny too. My teacher made him chill in the math teacher's room until class was over. Our math teacher asked him what he did to get kicked out of class and he told her. She was cracking up. Apparently, that science teacher has had it in for his family.

[NightAngel]

Yes, thank-you.

And if you don't know how to figure out 1+1=? then you cannot possibly work 1+y=2.

[Greenday]

1+y=2? How about finding the area between the curves x=4-y^2 and y=3x^3-x^2+12x? Damn you Calculus II! DAMN YOU!!! :pissed: :deadhorse:

[NightAngel]

I was just using your example, dear... no need to get all Calc.
:lol:

[Greenday]

Calc sucks. How's that for my school memories. My teacher today said, "You guys did pretty bad on the last quiz on this stuff, so I'm just going to give you another one." Great. Thanks.

My junior year of high school, some stupid freshman thought he was cool and funny by always grabbing the door handle to my chem class and shaking the door. Unfortunately for him, my teacher is a nutcase(in a good way). One day, before the one lunch period, she put iodine on the door handle. And just like every other day, the idiot grabbed the handle, shook the door, then took off. I bet he had one hell of a time scraping at his hand trying to get it off. After everyone had either gotten to class or lunch, my teacher started cleaning the doorknob. The superintendant happened to be walking the halls and when she saw my teacher, she said, "What are you doing? You know what, I probably don't want to even know." Then she laughed and kept walking the halls. Great amusement for my class. I love my old chem teacher. She is so great.

[AFpheonix]

straight up iodine tincture, or triiodide? :devil: Muahahahaha!

[Caveat Emptor]

In 3rd grade, the teacher read Where the Red Fern Grows. I had a few nightmares after that regarding the part wher the neighbor boy gets gutted by the axe.

In 5th grade, when a student was out of the room, she would tell the class that that student had some "difficulties" and to try and understand that. Later, when she asked the class to write how the class could improve, I wrote about that and that I didn't think doing that was right. She APOLOGIZED in front of the enire class!!

Our 6th grade teacher was really cool. Mr. Quigley. However, you did NOT want to piss him off. He would have you write the spelling words of the week 20 times each. One time my friend and I started horsing around. He made us do 20 pushups, then clean our desks. I had recently done mine myself, but my friends was very messy, and Mr. Quigley actually came over and dumped his desk onto the floor.

I took a "gifted" class in 7th grade, called Project Enrichment. I researched and wrote an essay on some part of the southern campaign during the American Revolution. The teacher that was with me, Mr. Clark, was also my 8th grade math teacher and was a bit odd. He claimed he was from Vermont, but I have been there several times never heard anyone talk like him. We had to place our homework under the "brown vahse" and listen to him talk about the "perfect squah."

Did anyone else have a "Freshman Friday?" I got caught in a crowd leaving the cafeteria and got a dose of cologne.

I hated math after 6th grade. I squeaked by those classes with a C average. I got the same grade with German under "Herr" Webber. I don't think he should have been teaching; he would get completely red faced at some of our relatively minor antics.

I took AP US Government, Comparative Government and U.S. History. Mr. Sparnecht, who taught the U.S. classes, was really cool and was the reason I (started) college as a Social Studies Ed major.

[Format C]

High School: My favorite class was Senior Seminar. It was a combined Social Studies and English class that was designed to be college-level with demands.

At the beginning of each month, we had to pick a book and write a review (not a report) on it to be turned in at the end of the calendar month. For the first half of the year, we had to write research papers that linked events on the twentieth centry. (A sample topic would be: How could the Paris Peace Conference of 1920 have prevented the breakout of the Vietnam war in the 1950s?)

For the second half of the class, we were given a topic on Monday and had to present a 500-word essay with discussion on Friday for the rest of the academic year. We also had the monthly book reviews. We also had two major projects during that period: A proposal to improve the city we were in and find a mentor in our anticipated fields to get a feel for them.

I credit that class for giving me a renewed interest in reading, writing, debate, and for having college freshman-level reading skill and college sophomore-level vocabulary by the time my high school career ended.

In community college, I had a wonderful world history instructor who put some famous historical leaders on trial at the end of the semester. If you were a witness, you had to do research on your character and testify for or against the historical figure on trial.

University was the best three years for me: I had a close-knit group of friends for the whole time and I am now trying to keep in contact with them. We would spend some very late evenings plotting each others' demise in strategy board games.