In my rural North Georgia elementary school in the late 1990s, normally we would have a 25-30min recess where, if we had behaved well and completed assignments, we were allowed to play on our small but functional playground. Teachers would usually not hover over us, but most games consisted of tag, Four Square, or swinging.
In my rural North Georgia elementary school in the late 1990s, normally we would have a 25-30min recess where, if we had behaved well and completed assignments, we were allowed to play on our small but functional playground. Teachers would usually not hover over us, but most games consisted of tag, Four Square, or swinging.
When I was in 5th grade, my school installed a new, shiny metal slide. One day after school, while my mom had a meeting with a teacher, my brothers and I were allowed to play on the playground unsupervised. A few minutes into playtime, the assistant principal came out to the playground carrying a box of wax paper from the cafeteria. He asked us how we liked the new playground equipment and if the slide was fast. Then, he ripped off four rectangular sheets of wax paper and handed three of them to my brothers and me. He took the fourth sheet and began climbing the steps to the top of the new slide. He then told us to watch as he placed the wax paper onto the slide, sat down, and zoomed down the slide in a blur. With his tie flapping over his shoulder in the breeze, he zipped off the end of the slide hitting the ground below with a loud thump. His dress pants were covered in wood chips as he stood up and turned to give us a wink and a smile. We giggled excitedly at the sight before we raced each other to the top of the slide to follow suit. That afternoon, we took turn after turn using our wax paper sleds on the hot slick tin. I'll never forget the look of disbelief on my classmates' faces the next day when I told them what we were allowed to do! It's one of my best childhood memories.
In my rural North Georgia elementary school in the late 1990s, normally we would have a 25-30min recess where, if we had behaved well and completed assignments, we were allowed to play on our small but functional playground. Teachers would usually not hover over us, but most games consisted of tag, Four Square, or swinging.
When I was in 5th grade, my school installed a new, shiny metal slide. One day after school, while my mom had a meeting with a teacher, my brothers and I were allowed to play on the playground unsupervised. A few minutes into playtime, the assistant principal came out to the playground carrying a box of wax paper from the cafeteria. He asked us how we liked the new playground equipment and if the slide was fast. Then, he ripped off four rectangular sheets of wax paper and handed three of them to my brothers and me. He took the fourth sheet and began climbing the steps to the top of the new slide. He then told us to watch as he placed the wax paper onto the slide, sat down, and zoomed down the slide in a blur. With his tie flapping over his shoulder in the breeze, he zipped off the end of the slide hitting the ground below with a loud thump. His dress pants were covered in wood chips as he stood up and turned to give us a wink and a smile. We giggled excitedly at the sight before we raced each other to the top of the slide to follow suit. That afternoon, we took turn after turn using our wax paper sleds on the hot slick tin. I'll never forget the look of disbelief on my classmates' faces the next day when I told them what we were allowed to do! It's one of my best childhood memories.