If you’re headed towards 40, there’s a whole collection of school memories that probably make total sense to you, but sound like complete nonsense to anyone younger.
From odd punishments to tech that barely qualified as “technology,” school life in the ’80s and ’90s had a weird, wonderful rhythm all of its own. It wasn’t glamorous, it wasn’t polished, but it definitely stuck with you. Here are just some of the school day flashbacks from this period that only make sense if you were there to live them.
1. Getting wheeled in a massive TV on a trolley
There was no better feeling than seeing that clunky grey TV being rolled into the classroom. It didn’t matter what was on it—watching something instead of working felt like a national holiday. Sometimes it was a documentary you barely followed, other times it was a random VHS the teacher had lying around. Either way, the trolley meant freedom. No one under 30 will ever understand the thrill.
2. Having to rewind every video before watching it
Before streaming and instant access, you had to rewind the whole tape before watching anything. And if the last person didn’t rewind it? Tough luck—get ready to wait. Teachers would press play and the whole class would groan when the credits rolled backwards. It was low-key chaos, but we didn’t know any different.
3. Those wooden pencil cases with secret compartments
You were either a felt-tip lid chewer or the proud owner of one of those long, boxy wooden pencil cases with sliding tops. If yours had a hidden drawer, you were basically royalty. These boxes weighed a ton and always had the faint smell of splinters and leaky biros. However, they had personality, and no one ever confused yours with someone else’s.
4. The real risk of getting whacked with a blackboard rubber
Teachers back then didn’t always have the softest approach. If someone was mucking about at the back, there was every chance a wooden blackboard rubber would be lobbed in their direction. It was somehow both terrifying and hilarious. You didn’t complain—you just tried not to laugh while dodging flying chalk dust.
5. Using encyclopedias for actual homework
If you needed information, you didn’t Google it—you flicked through a massive book that had last been updated sometime before you were born. And yes, it was usually missing the one topic you needed. Bonus points if it was an old Britannica that took up an entire shelf and weighed more than your school bag. Somehow, we still managed to hand in essays using nothing but guesswork and Volume J-L.
6. Desperately hoping the overhead projector would break
Every time a teacher fired up the overhead projector, you crossed your fingers it wouldn’t work. The bulbs were temperamental, and the heat they gave off could’ve grilled a sandwich. If the transparency sheets were smudged or out of order, class would grind to a halt. It was the closest thing we had to a fire drill-level disruption.
7. Getting clapped for wheeling the dinner trolley
If it was your turn to help with the dinner trolley, you felt like an absolute legend. Wheeling it down the hallway with your mate, plastic plates clattering around, felt like a parade in your honour. And if someone clapped when you arrived at the classroom? Peak school fame. Forget awards—this was the respect that mattered.
8. Covering your books in wrapping paper or wallpaper
For some reason, covering your textbooks in spare wallpaper or wrapping paper was just… a thing. No one questioned it—it was just part of school prep. Whether it was floral, foil, or something that looked suspiciously like your nan’s living room wall, it was all fair game. Oh, and heaven help the kid who didn’t cover theirs at all.
9. Trying to draw the perfect S in every margin
That weird angular “S” design? No one knew where it came from, but everyone drew it. Over and over. In every margin, every notebook, sometimes covering an entire page. It wasn’t even cool anymore after a while—we just couldn’t stop. That thing had a grip on our generation like nothing else.
10. Having actual blackboards and chalk everywhere
Whiteboards didn’t exist yet—or if they did, your school couldn’t afford them. So it was chalk everywhere. On your hands, your uniform, and occasionally in your mouth if you sat too close to the front. The sound of nails on a blackboard still haunts you. And yes, there was always one teacher who insisted on writing with the tiniest nub of chalk known to man.
11. Smelling that weird blue paper from the copy machine
Those worksheets with purple ink and slightly blurry text? They came from some mystical machine that smelled like chemicals and nostalgia. You’d sniff it the second it was handed out—don’t lie. That blue ink had no business smelling that strong, but somehow, it made class slightly more bearable.
