Once you ran out the gate on that final day of school in June it seemed like summer stretched ahead of you forever. Endless sunny days (they’re always sunny in our memories), appearing back in mam’s kitchen for food and running away again to play until night fell, trips to the beach, visits to cousins and ice-cream as a diet staple. All too soon though, those back to school ads started and mam started freaking out about how much you’d grown and all the shopping that needed to be done ahead of your return to your place of education. You might have cried, kicked, screamed at the thought, but admit it… secretly you loved heading back. Here’s why.

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BFFS 4EVA & EVA

You were reunited with your besties and each of you had a whole three months worth of stories, both real and imagined, to catch up on.

 

Lunch never looked so good

Never mind what food went in to it, (cheese sandwiches, crisps and the fruit you secretly binned), selecting your new lunchbox and flash was not a decision to be taken lightly. Were you going to have a Care Bears year, a My Little Pony year or a Superman year? Decisions, decisions.

Pic via Flickr 

 

Readying your supplies

In the same vein, choosing your new pencil case, getting new set of markers and that evening a week before your return spent covering all your new books. Were you ‘fancy’ (clear plastic), or ‘old school’ (brown paper or wallpaper). Her.ie votes wallpaper FTW.

Pic via Parentella 

 

Big year or small year? 

If you went to a small school, chances are you experienced the agony and the ecstasy of twin classrooms. Every second year you were small fries, subject to unmerciful taunting by second/fourth/sixth class. On alternate years however, you were on to a winner. You knew it all, when it came to this classroom at least…

 

A room of one’s own

Primary school classrooms were a wondrous place. Every space inch covered with maths tables, Irish verbs and art projects, many hours were spent happily drifting from the lesson at hand and examining every nook and cranny. After a year or two though, chances are you’d seen all you could see and could most likely describe your room in detail, blindfolded. Coming back to school knowing you were moving into a new room was most exciting.

 

Musical chairs 

Who would you sit beside? Would you be in whispering proximity to your mates or sentenced to a year of passing notes through other classmates? Would the teacher dare to place you beside a BOY? In junior years, this was a form of torture. In your more worldly fourth class and onwards days… it really wasn’t so bad.

 

The smell of new books

Possibly the most intoxicating scent of all time. Someone should bottle and sell that stuff. Oh, wait.

 

What I did with my summer holiday

Everyone loved these essays. Your poor parents spent three months trying to entertain you and you run home after the first day back and ask; “What did I DO all summer…. It’s for my homework?”. If they didn’t strangle you then, they never will.

 

Halloween was on the way 

No sooner were you back than you and your mates were talking about the next midterm break. Halloween was on the way, epic craic altogether.

 

You fancied someone in your class or on your bus

Admit it. We all did.

 

 

Feeling all nostalgic yet? Check out our favourite Primary School Memories