DONNA'S GRADE SCHOOL MEMORIES -continued

   The following are more of Donna Ingraham's (Wernberg) memories of grade school days at Laurel Consolidated School.

     MUSIC CLASSES BEGIN

     I have always loved music! Music class in elementary school in Laurel was held in the lower level/gym area of the school. We always sat on bleachers while we sang songs like "She'll Be Comin' Round The Mountain", "Old Dan Tucker", and "America The Beautiful" from song books that were provided.
The favorite activity for me was when the teacher brought out a large LP with Dumbo on the cover. She would turn on the record player at probably 78 and the story would begin. She would turn the page with each beep on the record and the story would continue. How I loved that story and probably still would if I could go back and listen again.

     FIELD TRIP

    One day the kindergarten teacher decided to take us all, 20 some of us, on a walk around Laurel. Now, Laurel is not exactly Chicago so it wouldn't take long. It was a nice day and we headed out two by two holding hands. I was with my best friend, Ben. He had a sister the same age as my sister. As we were walking merrily along, we went past Mr. Bradley's house. He had two large German Shepherds. Just as we got past the house, one of the dogs came out and bit Ben in the pants! That ended the field trip.

     LIFE'S MOTTO

     Speaking of Ben, he provided me with a motto that I have claimed all my life. He had a HUGE tricycle that I wanted to ride so badly. Now, I am not the largest person on the planet to say the least. I was very upset when I couldn't reach the pedals. He was very comforting and said, "That's okay! You are only short on one end!" To this day I have to have a pedal o the car accelerator. Now you know which end is the shortest.


     SUPERINTENDENT'S OFFICE


     The Superintendent's office was an imposing place. It was on the first floor next to the bathrooms and the south classroom. It was not very large. There was room enough for a wooden desk and a chair. Above his desk was a large paddle that hung on the wall. Needless to say I never wanted to enter this room. It seemed to me the door was open all the time with the paddle in plain view. I never saw any student in there but I am sure there were some who needed correction. He was a nice, mild mannered man but I didn't want to get too close.f If I remember, he always wore a suit. Are students afraid of anyone anymore?  

     SAFE PLAYGROUND

     Our playground was anything but safe. All of the equipment was metal except for the see-saw and the swings. The slide was especially high and  if you stuck your tongue on it in the winter it  wouldn't come off until spring. I hated that slide but I ventured up one day. When I got to the top an especially nasty boy pushed me and down I went with him right behind. Going down wasn't so bad but landing was less than desirable. I landed on my bottom on sheer, hard ice. I couldn't sit down for a week. I still have trouble with my back. The swings were great and you could soar to the heavens and back. The see-saw was fine until someone on down-end decided to jump off. Down you came with a crash and you  hopefully didn't  have your feet under it. The merry-go-round was less than merry and was also metal. Many a shin probably has scars from that thing. But we survived  and are none the worse for wear.

     WINTER IN THE BUS

     The school bus was heated but not well. If it was really cold out, you froze. Remember, I was in a dress with a wool coat, snow pants,, hat, and mittens. On one occasion we had been in the midst of a snowstorm. When the bus turned the corner, into the snow bank we went. Since we were right by a farm house, I assume a tractor was used to pull us out. The bus went on its way again. It was an improvement from the days my father drove a school bus or hack pulled by horses. The kids in town walked home and I always envied them because they would plan activities after school that I could not be part of because I rode the bus. Still, I wouldn't trade growing up on a farm for anything.

     I NEVER PASSED NOTES AGAIN

     There are several lessons one learns in life. This was one of those. I was in probably 2nd or 3rd grade and had a crush on one particular boy. I wrote about it to my best friend, Nikki. The teacher spied me passing the note to Nikki and confiscated it. Horror of horrors the teacher made me come to the front of the class and read my note. I could not have been more embarrassed and have been very careful what I put in print. As I remember no one laughed and neither did I.

TO BE CONTINUED-----