In 6th grade I was assigned to the classroom out in one of the many portables. Some of the parents of the 2nd graders complained that their kid was in the portable, but I don’t recall there being much uproar about 6th graders in portables. But that is another story altogether.
I digress. I was out in the portable. That being the case it was away from the rest of the school. We usually didn’t get much news from the outside…like the usual gossip that permeates throughout elementary school…especially in the teachers’ lounge.
Kids who arrived early at school were sent to the gym in sorta a holding pattern. Somehow the teachers union had worked into the contracts that said they didn’t need to see the kids until 7:30AM. That’s it. So anywhere from 6:45 to 7:25, we were sent to the gym to wait until school actually started. Not me. I lived approximately 1 mile from the school (maybe less, I could have walked it). So I had my mom drop me off at around 7:15 or so. And I’d go straight to the portable. No gym for me. No crowded gym with kids yelling with nothing to do. Nope. I acted like I was going to the bookstore to buy something, then I headed off to the portable. Usually another girl and I would be the only ones in there. Once our teacher caught on and said “Y’all are way too early. They haven’t let you out of the gym yet.” But nothing ever was said of it. I’d get some peace and quiet to myself without the self conscious act of walking into a crowded gym thinking everyone was staring at me. That was a big deal back then.