Elementary school was a time most of us look back on with fond memories of hanging out with your friends during recess. It was a time when you made friends because you actually liked each other, not because you were trying to fit in with the "popular kids." Elementary school was a time when you looked forward to field-trips, bookfairs, and field day. Below are 10 reasons that made elementary school great!
1. Field Day
Who didn't love a day that was seven hours of pure recess? Heck, you even got a free t-shirt out of this day. Well… Your parents probably had to buy it, but as a kid that didn’t faze you. This day was most likely every teachers worst nightmare as students get muddy, wet, and sticky, but to us? Field Day was in the top five best days of the school year.
2. Career Day
Something that should've taken place in high school, but I mean I'm not complaining. You got to listen to different careers you might like to have, but really this day was just a waste of time. In elementary school you dreamed big and wanted to work for NASA and be an astronaut, you wanted to be a teacher or you wanted to follow your parent’s footsteps. Honestly, most students arrive at college with their major being classified as "Undeclared" colleges should be the ones putting on a career day.
3. The Book Fair
None of us actually read that much, but after seeing all of these books we all thought, “I might actually start reading!” You spent $20 of your mom's money... And as for the book you bought, well it most likely collected dust in your room. The little knick-knacks at the register were the real prize anyways.
Speaking of reading, most of us never did the full 60 minutes of reading to earn the ticket to Six Flags, we just had our parents sign off. The real question is: How many of us actually used the free ticket?
4. P.E.
It was actually fun! It wasn't a class where you run the mile every day or play team sports like in Middle and High School. The most beloved day of all was when the teachers brought out the parachute. Oh! And we can’t forget learning dances like "The Cha-Cha Slide" and the "Cotton Eye Jo".
5. Jump Rope For Heart
Literally one of my favorite memories from elementary school. Learning how to jump rope and double dutch really made you think you could be Corbin Bleu from Jump In. Then you had to try to maneuver your way through the obstacle course that was set up for the different sides of the heart. My school went all out with tunnels and balance beams to military crawling under more obstacles.
6. Learning From Movies
Ms. Frizzle and her gang were so much better than just listening to your teacher drag on about the material. The shenanigans Ms. Frizzle’s class always got into were bizarre at best, but that’s what made you love it!
Bill Nye had the theme song that you would have stuck in your head for days on end. Bill Nye really made science rock!
Don’t forget about School House Rock! Thanks to my 4th grade teacher and the song sheets she passed out, I can still tell you every word to the “Shot Heard Around the World” and “Conjunction Junction What’s Your Function”.
If you took a foreign language you probably watched Muzzy, and although you didn't understand a single word, as a kid it was still one of the best educational movies out there.
7. Those educational songs teachers taught you
From learning the helping verbs song to the prepositional song to even the states in alphabetical order, these songs were more beneficial than you ever imagined they would be. In elementary school you're like whatever, but once you're in college you realize those songs were so helpful, and although you won't admit it, you know you like to sing them to your friends trying to seem cool.
8. Field-trips!
Why did field-trips stop being a thing? Whether it was a trip to the Dahlonega Gold Mines or the Tennessee Aquarium they were filled with adventure and were in the top 3 best days of the year. The Varsity was the normal pit stop for lunch, and who you sat with on the bus was the biggest ordeal. Even though this was middle school trip, you can't leave out the Savannah Field Trip! What was more fun than sharing a hotel room for two nights with your best friends, and getting to go to the beach with your entire eighth grade class?
9. Learning to Play the Recorder
You might complain about the recorder now, but be honest, in elementary school you thought you were the shit every time you passed a new level. Being a "black belt" was something completely different in your music class than anywhere else.
10. Book Buddies
As a Kindergartner you loved having a "huge" fifth grader come listen to you read. They were your role model. As a fifth grader you just loved getting to be out of class. Seeing how much your book buddy looked up to you, was a nice bonus, and it made you wish you visited them more than just on Fridays.
Shout-out to all our elementary school teachers for putting up with our little kid antics, for decorating their classrooms so we felt at home, and for showing us that learning could be fun.
