Good memories of school

[LSWR Cavalier]

A family member used to remark that 'school days are the best days of your life'. Either an out and out lie or his adult life was terrible.

I was at school decades ago, I really can not be sure that my memories, memories of memories are correct. But now I am retired, no need to remember now, this is the best time. One important reason for that: memories! (Mostly not of school).

 

[Paul Jones 88]

When I first went to Grammar School some of the other boys took a dislike to me because I was far more interested in the railway than football and so they wanted to bully me, my favorite memory from school was when they found out that I had been boxing since I was six, trained by my father who was an amateur boxer of a degree of distinction.

 

[birchesgreen]

A family member used to remark that 'school days are the best days of your life'. Either an out and out lie or his adult life was terrible.

I think your school days can be the best time though not at school. When you are a kid you are largely insulated from "adult" worries like paying the bills, keeping a roof over your head, dealing with hostile work places. All you got to worry out is not getting your head stuck down the toilet and sadistic/pervy PE teachers.

 

[Welshman]

Went to the "Technical High School" in Halifax.
Studied Shakespeare in the Metalwork laboratory and German "A" level in the woodwork Lab.
Had to chose between Woodwork, Metalwork and Music. Music teacher. a certain Geoffrey Holden, played Prokofiev's Classical Symphony.
That was it. Discovered Classical Music. For life. Deo Gratias.

 

[lxfe_mxtterz]

Leaving the wretched, miserable place...

 

[Cloud Strife]

When I first went to Grammar School some of the other boys took a dislike to me because I was far more interested in the railway than football and so they wanted to bully me, my favorite memory from school was when they found out that I had been boxing since I was six, trained by my father who was an amateur boxer of a degree of distinction.

I have some fun memories of this as well.

First fight, some idiot who wanted to fight me because he thought I would be a pushover. I took him down with a wrestling-style takedown and simply pounded him until some older kids intervened to get us back on our feet. He came for more (stupid, given that he was already bleeding!), and I took him down with a headlock takedown, followed by a couple of elbows straight to the face. The second elbow knocked him out, and he learnt his mistake. I coincidentally punched him again a while later, but that was after he racially abused a friend and I felt obliged to remind him of what was going to happen if he started again.

Second/third fights - some kid in the year above punched me for no apparent reason. I thumped him repeatedly, his nose exploded, and the fight ended with him bleeding badly while crying. I was landing shots at him at will, and he eventually staggered off in tears. A few minutes later, his friend (the 'second hardest in the year') comes up and smacked me right in the jaw. I turned round and unloaded on him, then I got him against a bin and kneed him to the stomach and face. He was also a bit of a mess, and he was fortunate that a teacher had intervened - I had every intention of kicking seven bells out of him to send a message to anyone else who might fancy a shot.

Anyway, the Deputy Head got involved. She threw her hands up when I pointed out that I'd just been defending myself in both situations,

Not a single word of bother from anyone from that moment onwards. I didn't throw my weight around or bully anyone, but I had a very strong reputation as someone who could and would fight.

 

[Galvanize]

Very few good memories of School if I’m to be completely honest.

However, from Primary School:
Nativity Play in Year 2 (involving all Lower Years)…I had the all important role as the Narrator!

In Year 4:
My School in London was part of the “Farms for City Children” initiative, one of the Teachers was a personal friend of the Author Michael Morpurgo who was part of it all. Early February 2001 we spent a week down in Nethercott Farm in North Devon…highlights being collecting Eggs from the Chickens and then helping cook breakfast, going to the Dairy Farm and watching how the Cows get milked, even trying some of the milk as fresh as it got! We rode in the trailer of a Tractor down a bumpy Country Lane…don’t think that would be allowed now…and one morning my Group got out of Washing Up after Breakfast as we heard news that Lambs were being born!

What we didn’t enjoy doing was clearing all the Cow Poo off of the ground outside the Dairy Farm…or similarly cleaning out the Horse and Donkey Stables!

Michael Morpurgo read us all one of his latest stories one evening in the “Quiet Room” before we all went to bed, and was also there to sign copies before we went home. Fantastic!

Secondary School:
In the First year, we had a Residential School Trip to The Lake District, an outdoor activity centre on the shores of Lake Windermere. Originally we were supposed to go by Coach (not a fan of that!)…and on the Friday before the Monday we were meant to go, the Head of Lower School announced that the Coach Company had to cancel the booking. The trip was almost over…but fortunately someone high up in the School had a contact who worked for Virgin Trains, and they were able to transfer the money from the coach booking to VT. Trip was saved at the Eleventh Hour! Amazingly some of the seats were in First Class, so we all had the chance to travel in FC at least one way (my Form had FC outward, Standard Class back)…

For many of us it was great to have a week away from our parents, we did lots of activities like building a camp, bit of rock climbing, rafting and kayaking and such like. I recall one group of people either broke something or what, and didn’t own up to it as the Site Manager and the Head of Lower School told us all off and made us do Litter Sweeping on the last day.

One of my favourite teachers was my Geography Teacher. We had him in Year 8 when he first started as a Newly Qualified in his early 20s. While he was a bit of a pushover as he was initially a bit nervous, he soon matured into being a good teacher. Was good as he was really helpful, wasn’t too “fast paced”, and knew how to make a boring (to some) subject more interesting. The boys liked him because they saw him as one of the Lads, as they could engage in some healthy banter about Football with him. We had him through the GCSE period, but he left at the end of Year 11, memory serves me right he took some time out of Teaching to go Travelling, no idea what became of the guy!

 

[brad465]

In Sixth Form one of my A-Level Geography teachers told my class about his son getting suspended for 3 days from school, for modifying the school's website in an incriminating yet hilarious manner: My teacher's son's school website had "We do not tolerate any bullying" somewhere on the front page, where his son and a few classmates for a laugh modified it in a computer science class to: "We don't tolerate any bullying except for fat people". Apparently his son didn't realise it was done for real and thought it was a copy on the side or something. The modification was visible on the website for 3 days, and when caught was suspended for the length of time it was visible.

The story still makes me laugh to this day whenever I think of it, even though my teacher told it nearly 10 years ago now

 

[scarby]

What good memories do you have of school?

Sitting next to Joan in my geography class.

 

[Dai Corner]

My secondary school bordered the Bristol - Exeter line so some of us spent our lunch breaks observing and recording the last days of the Westerns and the first HSTs. As we got older, the girls sunbathing gained more attention than the trains though.

 

[JohnMcL7]

A family member used to remark that 'school days are the best days of your life'. Either an out and out lie or his adult life was terrible.

It's a comment I heard a lot at the time as well and found it worrying if those were going to be my best days but thankfully not true. I hated school mainly because I was bullied most of the way through it although it did get much better in the last couple of years I was still glad to be out of school. I went back a few years ago to see the school before it was demolished and it was surprising how many memories the sights and smells brought back and none of them positive.

 

[dk1]

Can’t think of a single one. Detested it.

 

[Mag_seven]

Can’t think of a single one. Detested it.

Agreed - in that case I suppose leaving the school building for the last time would be my best memory.

 

[dk1]

Agreed - in that case I suppose leaving the school building for the last time would be my best memory.

I just gradually stopped going. Can’t even remember there ever being a planned last time. Decided the previous year I wasn’t going to take a single exam & they never really bothered me. Right from Nursery & First School (Infants I think then) it was a place I was always excited to get away from.

 

[Bertone]

During the winter term in the lower sixth form at Grammar school, three of us lads decided that we would skip the weekly PE rugby games and spend the time in the warm library catching up on homework.
However, the PE teacher who had the term report to write up for each of us, realised of course that he hadn’t seen us for a good few weeks.
We were summoned before him and asked to explain our absence.
I cannot recall what excuses the first two of us gave but the last lad uttered the immortal words -
“Sir, Rugby is the personification of hooliganism”
The teacher was struck dumb and waved us all out without saying another word.
The lad whose response I will never forget, went on to be a Labour MP up in the North East before he was deselected in in the late 1990’s.

 

[gswindale]

Year 8 Parents Evening. Sat in the reception area whilst my Mum was talking to my teachers, and m Dad was talking to the parents of his students, our Headmaster comes past and asks if I'd like a can of Coke. He goes to the staff room and gets one and for some reason either threw or rolled it to me. Not really thinking, I open it straight away and get soaked.

Year 7 one lunch time we all got locked into our classrooms as there were reports of gunmen on the loose - I recall hearing the Police Helicopter.

Had a few instances of Fire Alarms due to people setting fire to toilets or the Medical room mattress, including one where our French teacher wouldn't believe us as the bell wasn't working properly.

Year 13 Orchestra tour to Germany led to a slightly amusing situation where the students had to persuade our current Headmaster to get onto a Cable car in order to visit a rather nice drinking establishment. We also had a teacher walk into a Glass door in the hotel, but had the misfortune to watch England go out of the World Cup on penalties against Argentina.

 

[Ashley Hill]

I went back a few years ago to see the school before it was demolished

My old comprehensive is also due for demolition. Recently I had a good poke around what I could but much of it was fenced off. What surprised me having walked away 35yrs ago was how small it now seemed.

 

[Busaholic]

During the winter term in the lower sixth form at Grammar school, three of us lads decided that we would skip the weekly PE rugby games and spend the time in the warm library catching up on homework.
However, the PE teacher who had the term report to write up for each of us, realised of course that he hadn’t seen us for a good few weeks.
We were summoned before him and asked to explain our absence.
I cannot recall what excuses the first two of us gave but the last lad uttered the immortal words -
“Sir, Rugby is the personification of hooliganism”
The teacher was struck dumb and waved us all out without saying another word.
The lad whose response I will never forget, went on to be a Labour MP up in the North East before he was deselected in in the late 1990’s.

I was forced to play rugby - first game I was chosen as hooker, first scrum I got kicked in the head. Second game I was full back - if anyone came my way I'd deliberately run the other way to avoid having to tackle them. Can't remember 'playing' much after that, but it cost me when it came to summer term: although my performances in the cricket trial games were pretty good, I never got near the first XI, although being a leg spin bowler was also VERY unpopular at the time with coaches too!

 

[yorksrob]

Getting sent home in winter because the heating was knackered !

 

[STEVIEBOY1]

I loathed school, best bits for me were home time, holidays and the day I left school when I was 16 and had done my CSE & O Level exams.

 

[Springs Branch]

I went to a state Grammar School, which had more than its fair share of eccentric, but usually inspiring teachers. One of these was our elderly (well past retirement age), but spritely chemistry teacher.

He ran a weekly lunchtime Science Club, which I joined with a couple of friends - originally to blag some time indoors out of the rain & cold, but I was quite nerdy so actually became interested in some of the "off syllabus" activities.

Membership of this club entitled you to purchase various chemicals from the teacher for a small sum (supplied in brown paper bags), plus bits and pieces such as glass test tubes which I used to supplement my Salters Chemistry Set at home.

Fireworks being expensive even back then, my mates and I decided we'd make our own. We clubbed together to purchase modest amounts of potassium nitrate, sulphur, strontium carbonate, magnesium ribbon and the like, and acquired the proportions needed to make gunpowder - courtesy of said chemistry teacher (we trustingly assumed he'd given us the correct formula, but in retrospect I'm not so sure). We were about thirteen years old and had ambitions to construct a firework rocket - what could possibly go wrong?

Come the weekend, it was off to the alleyway behind the row of terraced houses where my mate lived to test our first firework.

Firework Mk.1 did not produce any colourful fizzes or bangs, but did generate billowing clouds of smelly grey smoke, got a nearby dog barking and attracted the attention of my mate's grumpy old neighbour, so a quick retreat was necessary.

At the next Science Club we purchased more supplies and retreated to the privacy of the slag heaps at an abandoned colliery for further trials.

Of course, putting together operational fireworks is a real black art, for which we had neither experience nor easy access to knowledge, so all we ever managed was more clouds of grey smoke. Despite being on waste ground, our Proving Ground was near a local football pitch where an amateur league match was in progress. It's amazing no one came to investigate, or called the police or fire brigade.

Imagine doing any of this today. The Anti-Terrorist Branch and the Bomb Squad would be breaking down your front door at 6am the next morning and the chemistry teacher would be out of a job in no time flat.

 

[Busaholic]

Getting sent home in winter because the heating was knackered !

Heating? In schools? Snowflakes!

 

[yorksrob]

Heating? In schools? Snowflakes!

"Heating" was probably a generous description for the rickety old contraption

 

[johnnychips]

I wonder if you are still allowed to climb up the thick hawser ropes that hung from the gym ceiling, with a leather sheath at the bottom. Just because that was the only gym-related activity I was ever any good at.

 

[DerekC]

Going on school trips - by train, of course. The first was from Cheshunt via the Tottenham & Hampstead, North London Line, Acton Wells and Old Kew Junction to Windsor & Eaton Riverside. What could have been better! It certainly started with an N7 on the front. Whether that got changed en route I don't unfortunately recall. If not it would have caused a minor sensation amongst spotters in Southern parts!

 

[johntea]

I have a few interesting memories

-Won an award for design technology for reasons I can't remember in Year 7/8, anyway at GCSE choices they had a brand new Manufacturing course that they suggested I did instead of Modern Languages...this sounded like a great idea at the time, until I later found out the Manufacturing course was meant to be 4 lessons a week but because I had taken it in place of languages I was only timetabled for 2 of those 4 lessons every week so it was no real surprise when I was miles behind everyone else in terms of coursework, amusingly I think I got a 'C' in the actual paper exam but overall ended up with a 'G' once the exam and coursework scores were combined...so I would have probably just been better off sticking at languages all along!

Interestingly I also got to do an Electronics course for GCSE and ended up with a more respectable 'C' for that despite designing a 'personal' alarm that was more the size of a house alarm (I guess it was the electronics that counted rather than the plastics they were shoved in!)

-Did work experience in the school IT tech support department who trusted me enough towards the end of the week to build up a few brand new PCs, only for me to decide a plugged in power supply would be a great place to rest my finger, I'm only here to tell the tale today due to some very quick acting circuit breakers!!! (worringly I still work in IT support to this day!), I remember a full time job came up there whilst I was at college which was my first ever job interview and I found out later they all wanted me to get the job...had it not been for the headteacher being on the panel who had taken a dislike to me over the years for whatever reason!

-PE in Year 10/11, where they gave you a choice as to what sports you wanted to do, obvious choice for a Friday afternoon lesson was the nearby local gym because you wasted half the lesson getting there and back, then just got to fiddle with all the fancy gym equipment whilst you were there and play practical jokes on your mates such as setting the fastest speed on a treadmill!

-When someone set the sports hall on fire and we lived virtually next door so I got my state of the art digital camera out and filmed the entire thing then stuck it on YouTube, the regional news were round the next morning after the footage! I sadly didn't get paid a penny but as a kid having your name and footage on the TV made you feel like a celebrity and their 15 minutes of fame!

-At college we had a business studies teacher called Neil Buchanan...sadly not *that* Neil Buchanan also the college bus service drivers, one could have been mistaken for Rolf Harris and the other Jim Bowen!

-Another college memory was how there was the educational maintenance allowance (EMA) scheme and I somehow managed to get the top rate of £30 a week...a grand total of £0.00 ended up going towards items related to helping my education of course, it just went towards much more interesting things to a teenage me such as a Nintendo DS!

Looking back I wouldn't go as far as saying I 'hated' school but it wasn't a particular highlight of my life, which I sort of knew in my head back then anyway as at no point did I have even 1% interest in going to university and put the bare minimum effort in at A Level, as soon as you've got your first proper job and some experience it all seems to fade into a huge waste of time to be honest!

 

[birchesgreen]

Someone letting a stray dog into the school and it wandering the corridors.

 

[Dai Corner]

Someone letting a stray dog into the school and it wandering the corridors.

As a member of staff rather than a pupil I found myself helping to eject a stray horse from the school grounds. Fortunately it didn't get inside the building.

 

[D6130]

I have previously described my principal entertainment at secondary school....looking out of the classroom window at trains going up and down the West Highland Line. However, one of my best primary school memories involves a school camping trip to Crianlarich in May 1968, when I was ten and a half years old. The field in which we camped for a week was about two miles North-West of the village, on the South side of the main road to Tyndrum, about 100 yards from the Oban line and within more distant sight of the Fort William line on the opposite hillside. We travelled by train from Helensburgh Upper on the Summer-dated mid-morning Oban train, formed of a three car green-liveried, Inverness-based Swindon Cross-Country DMU. Unfortunately, the first class section was at the leading end, so I was unable to sit behind the driver, but it was a glorious day and the views from the line were fantastic. On arrival at Crianlarich, we were ferried to the camping field by one of the teachers, who had driven up in his Land Rover. Some days were spent hill walking, one of which involved walking along part of the trackbed of the former Callander & Oban line between Crianlarich and Luib. Less than three years after closure and less than two years after track lifting, the ballast was still in situ and and it was hard going for our young feet and legs. On another day, a small group of us had a trip to Oban in the afore-mentioned Land Rover and I remember being intrigued by the "Anderson's Piano" rock fall signalling system in the pass of Brander. Just about all of the trains on the Fort William line at that time were hauled by the rebuilt Paxman-engined North British class 29s, the numbers of which were not visible to us from the campsite. Apart from the dated DMU, the passenger and freight services on the Oban line seemed to be covered by two loco diagrams - one class 27 and one class 29. The 27 worked the morning Glasgow-Oban, the mid-day Oban-Glasgow, the evening Glasgow-Oban and the overnight Oban-Cadder freight. The 29 worked the 01 00 Glasgow-Oban passenger, news and mail, any local shunting and trips (such as taking the oil tanks to Connel Ferry) and then returned South with the 17 40 to Glasgow. At that time, there was no mid-day Glasgow-Oban service, so there must have been another loco for the overnight Cadder-Oban freight but, at the time, I couldn't work out the diagram, as I rarely recall ever seeing a double-headed train coming from Oban. Perhaps @Cheshire Scot could enlighten us as to how it worked in the seventies? The class 27 diagram seemed to alternate with either D5353 (Later 27 007) or D5354 (27 008), both of which had recently been repainted in Rail Blue with full yellow ends. One day, the prototype rebuilt class 29, D6123, the only one to retain its headcode discs, passed the campsite with the weed-killing train to and from Oban. A couple of days later, we returned to Helensburgh on the evening Up Oban train, hauled by the aforementioned D6123....my first class 29 haulage. The train was a real mixter-maxter of contrasting liveries, with the loco in two-tone green with thin white bodyside stripe and small yellow warning panels, The leading vehicle, a pre-war ex-LNER wooden-bodied full brake, in faded crimson and the remaining six or seven mark 1s being a mixture of lined maroon and blue/grey. Again it was a lovely day and the journey was over far too soon. On arrival at Helensburgh Upper, I was taken to visit the signal box on the island platform, which was to close less than a month later. I still have the final train register book from January to June 1968, which was found in the booking office safe several years later!

 

[yorksrob]

There was the memorable day when some vandals had broken some of the concrete slabs blocking the entrance to the air raid shelter.

A couple of the teachers went in for an explore and came out with some mouldy artefacts (an abacus being one as I recall).