First Day At School

[pheasantchick]

All the school programmes about starting schools, the thread about this topic, plus starting looking around secondary schools has reminded me about about when I started my senior school, Can you remember your first day at senior school.

I went to a good comp (non-grammar area) in Harpenden. I remember we all went into the hall. The head of the first year read out names for each class. There was some confusion at one point as two boys had the same name.

I don't recall any taster days prior to starting senior school. I didn't even look around other schools but went to the local comp where my brothers were already at. I don't remember much else apart from I think we had science and I wanted to make the first page in the exercise book look extremely neat. I'm sure we looked solids/liquids/gases and how the different atoms vary in these three states. Not sure why I remember that. We may have had science in the first week, rather than the first day.

[Snowdrops]

I can't really remember my first day at secondary school very much.

I can remember events leading up to it (taking the 11+ etc) and thousands (or so it seems) of days after it, but the day itself - it's a vague mist.

We didn't have any choice about which secondary school we went to. We lived abroad, dad being in the army, and there was only one school which served the English forces children. It entailed an hour's bus ride over a scary mountainous cliff top and I nearly wet myself everyday going round the bends of it. My memories of my time spent in that school are wonderful (especially the cream buns in the tuck shop - yum yum ).

Now, if you wanted to know about my first day at primary, I could tell you all about that - my memory's crystal clear on that day strangely enough!

[pheasantchick]

The thread is called 'First Day at School' so primary school memories are good also.

[Snowdrops]

See, that's why I never passed exams - I never read the questions properly

OK, first day at primary.

I can still see the whole classroom. The little chairs and tables, the huge windows (it was newly built, early 60's) and all the other little boys and girls. Their mummy's were all there giving them kisses and saying goodbye. I can remember just crying and crying and crying. And crying and crying and crying. And crying and crying and crying. My mum had to leave me almost as soon as we got there - she worked and couldn't stay like the other mummy's. I felt so little and alone. Then someone else's mummy (I can't remember who) came and gave me cuddles and made me feel better. Soon I was enjoying being at school with all the other boys and girls and I never cried again (well, about being left at school anyway ).

[mystery]

I remember playing in the Wendy House on the first day with a girl called Daphne. I don't remember ever seeing her again, and Wendy Houses went out of fashion too.

We had the trunks from felled trees to balance on outside, lots of dried beans, peas, shells etc to weigh out and put in measuring cylinders whenever we wanted to, 10 by 10 squares with numbers from 1 to 100, lots of drawing and freeplay, lots to do around the room in different places. When I look back it was all quite forward thinking. This was in a relatively poor state infant school in 60s too. I remember people holding up phonics cards and expecting me to make silly noises like "buh" when I could already read.

Whatever happened in the intervening decades?

[scary mum]

I don't remember my first day at school although I do remember walking to school as it was snowing. In the first year we had 3 teachers - one left, the other committed suicide - I can remember her saying goodbye to us all on the Friday afternoon . I guess the other one lasted the rest of the year. Were we really that bad?
Senior school - the whole school was new so no-one knew their way around, including the teachers, which made it rather nice for everyone.

[doodles]

I don't remember my first day at school as I was only three and a bit (I spent two years in what was reception but it was called "Playroom" in those days) but I do remember getting dressed in my school uniform - grey and red - in my bedroom which had green nylon carpet and orange patterned wallpaper (well it was the 60's).

[Plum]

My first day of primary school was traumatic! I went into the boys loos by mistake and it took me a long time to get over it!

Don't remember high school - I think there was so much to remember and take in at the time that I didn't have time to sit back and enjoy it.

[mystery]

It thought you were going to say you don't remember secondary because you went into the boys loos by mistake and it took you a long time to get out of there

[pheasantchick]