Saturday Night Genealogy Fun -- Elementary School Memories

 It's Saturday Night - 

time for more Genealogy Fun! 

Your mission, should you decide to accept it (cue the Mission Impossible music here) is to:

1) The new school year has started in the Northern hemisphere, and for most children that means a new grade, a new teacher, and perhaps new friends.

2)  Tell us about some of your elementary school memories when you were a child.  What are your memories of starting school in a new year?  Who were your teachers?  How did you get to school?  Who were your best friends?  What subjects did you like best?  What extra-curricular activities did you participate in?  Make up your own questions if you'd like!

3)  Share your memories in your own blog post, or in a Facebook post.

 Here's mine:

I attended all seven years of elementary school (1948-1955) kindergarten plus six grades) at Brooklyn Elementary at 30th Street and A Street in San Diego.  This was about 8 blocks south of my home.  My brother and I either walked or rode our bikes.  It was downhill going, and uphill coming home.  We usually used 30th Street because it was wider and had better sidewalks, plus a church playground, two mom and pop stores, and a drug store.  They built a new school several blocks away about ten years ago, but the old campus is now a Charter school campus called Albert Einstein Academy.  

I was always excited about the new school year.  We never knew who our teacher was going to be.  I had Mrs. Cleator for kindergarten (she seemed about 80 years old, but was probably only 60 or so); Mrs. Brown for first grade; I don't recall my second and third grade teachers;  Miss Williams was my fourth grade teacher, and I really liked her;  Mr. de la Torre was my 5th grade teacher, and he was good.  Mr. Wragg was my 6th grade teacher, and I liked him too (he was killed in 1979 by a student shooting at his school in San Diego).  

My best friends during 4th to 6th grade were Gordon MacLennan and Steve Johnson.  I lost track of Gordon after Junior High School.  I went all the way through high school with Steve, who was the smartest, most athletic and most fun guy in the classes - we competed.  I lost track of Steve when I went to college.  Baseball cards were the big deal, and we had a group that traded them like crazy.  We knew the names of all of the San Diego Padres and Cleveland Indian players (Padres were the Indians PCL farm club) -- our favorites were Herb Score, Rocky Colavito, and Luke Easter.  We used to take the #2 bus down to the Padres games at Lane Field (Broadway and Harbor Drive).

Girl friends?  Not many, I was too busy with school and sports.  There was one, named Carrie, when I was in 6th grade.  I don't remember her last name.  I still remember where she lived over on Bancroft Street, but I don't recall seeing her after 6th grade.  

My favorite subject was mathematics.  I quickly learned to add, subtract, my times tables, and division, and then fractions, and I think we started a little algebra.  I hated doing oral book reports.  My favorite period was recess, of course!  We had a large playground on one block, and a small ball field across Fern Street on the opposite corner.  We usually played baseball or kickball or dodgeball there.  In the spring, there was a travel softball league and I played for several years and got to visit other schools and see their facilities.  I usually played right field or end-of-the-bench, but I rooted good!

The major extracurricular activity for me was the Safety Patrol.  I joined in 4th grade, and did my duty at the corner of Fern and A Street every day after school while in 4th and 5th grade. We wore white uniforms, with a yellow hat and a red sweater.  I became a Sergeant in 5th grade and got to blow the whistle, and then became Supply Sergeant in 6th grade, the second in command;  Steve was the Lieutenant in charge, and then a Captain later in 6th grade.  This was tied into the San Diego Police Department, so we had an officer who commanded us.  I was lucky because in 6th grade it was Officer Richard Tazelaar, who was a family friend of ours.  The best part of this was being part of a team and learning discipline (we marched, shouted orders, etc.) but one Saturday a month the Police Department hosted all of the Safety Patrol members at the Fox Theater in downtown San Diego - cartoons, movies, hot dogs, punch, popcorn, peanuts, etc.  It was a great reward!

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