32 Things That Used To Be In Basically Every School On Earth 30 Years Ago That Pretty Much Zero Schools Have Now

Dave Stopera

9 January 2025 at 10:17 am·2-min read

1.If you can PICTURE the room in your old school with floors like this...

A floor with a pattern of square tiles in various earthy tones, showing slight wear and texture — Facebook: PopularGadgetsAndMiscOfThe60s70s80s

2.If you've ever washed your hands with this strange pink soap that only existed in schools...

Soap dispenser attached to a tiled wall, containing pink liquid soap — aarp.org

3.Or this kind of soap...

Hand catching Boraxo powdered soap from dispenser with "Moisten hands before using" instruction — reddit.com

4.Probably in a sink like this...

A round, stone-wash bathroom sink with a hands-free soap dispenser in a public restroom. Urinals and tiled walls are visible in the background — reddit.com

5.If you've ever had to use this in a classroom...

6.If you are lucky to have all your fingers after dealing with one of these...

Text reads: "My generation is built different because we really had classrooms full of these MINI GUILLOTINES," above an image of a paper cutter — Facebook: growingupinthe50s60s70s

7.If you've ever been assured getting underneath one of these will protect you from a nuclear bomb...

8.If you've watched someone open one of these markers and immediately smelled its intense aroma...

Sanford King Size permanent marker with a black cap and striped design, lying on a white surface — imgur.com

9.If you remember using these scissors that made your fingers feel IMMEDIATELY sore...

Two vintage metal scissors with wear and rust are placed on a wooden surface, blades closed, resembling the shape of glasses — ebay.com

10.If you took attendance like an ancient scribe...

Old school attendance sheet with names and days marked — Facebook: DoYouRememberWhen1

11.If you've ever performed manual labor to get a pencil sharp...

A vintage Boston vacuum mount pencil sharpener with a metal casing and a manual handle — Facebook: growingupinthe50s60s70s

12.If you know exactly what these two things were used for...

Two long, rusty metal pipes with hook ends lying on a concrete surface — Facebook: growingupinthe50s60s70s

13.If you've ever been flung off one of these at 100 mph...

playground equipment — Nicolemorse / Getty Images/iStockphoto

14.If you've ever been forced to do this after misbehaving...

Repeated lines of "I will not talk in class" written on notebook paper — Facebook: growingupinthe50s60s70s

Can you think of an old classmate you got in trouble with? Send this to them and remind them of your wild days!

15.If you've ever pulled this trick...

can wrapped in alumnium foil — Facebook: rotarydialer

16.If you got hours of enjoyment out of a ball on a rope...

A humorous image of a tetherball set against a brick wall. Text: "Back in my day... we would wait in line to play with a ball on a rope." — Facebook: DoYouRememberWhen1

17.If you ever received a good old fashioned hand-written report card...

A report card showing grades from November to June, with most subjects marked as 'A'. Personal growth is mostly rated as 'S' for satisfactory — Facebook: 351206518725478

18.If you can still smell this machine...

A vintage mimeograph machine prints a page with various symbols and text in different fonts, featuring icons like a cross, shoe, and telephone — reddit.com

19.If you learned to drive using one of these ancient contraptions...

Vintage driver's education simulators with steering wheels and dashboard controls in a classroom setting — Facebook: PopularGadgetsAndMiscOfThe60s70s80s

20.If you know exactly what this is...

A metal staple remover on a flat surface, viewed from above — Facebook: growingupinthe50s60s70s

21.If just looking at these makes you anxious...

Image showing disclosing tablets with text implying kids used to chew them to reveal plaque, so everyone knew who didn’t brush their teeth — Facebook: 351206518725478

22.If you became a master salesperson after dealing with these...

Box of World's Finest Chocolate bars, with caramel flavor indicated on the packaging, partially open on a counter — Facebook: grewup

23.If you've ever used what many have affectionately referred to as "vintage Google:"

A woman in glasses kneels by an open file drawer in a large filing system, holding cards, wearing a turtleneck and skirt, smiling at the camera — Frederic Lewis / Getty Images

24.If you can practically hear the sound of this map snapping back upwards...

Vintage pull-down classroom map of the United States, showing geographical features and state boundaries — reddit.com

25.If you ever had the pleasure of using this glue...

Three vintage LePage's mucilage glue bottles of varying sizes on a black background — Facebook: photo

26.If you ever missed a due date...

A library card with multiple stamped due dates, ranging from 1986 to 1991, showing a history of book borrowings and returns — Facebook: photo

27.If you know exactly what this is used for...

Metal key ring tag with a worn circular top and attached brush-like strands, placed on a white piece of paper on a wooden surface — Facebook: 351206518725478

28.If you ever took a class where you learned to write like this...

A handwritten note featuring shorthand symbols in blue ink and a few in red ink at the bottom — Facebook: growing.up.in.the.70s.80s

29.If you ever had a nice, relaxing class after someone rolled one of these in...

Eiki film projector with two reels sitting on a table in a room with chairs in the background — Facebook: photo

30.If you've ever took a peak at a teacher's grade book that looked like this...

Notebook with a grid layout showing handwritten numbers and variables organized in columns and rows, likely for data tracking or analysis — Facebook: grewup

31.If you know that one of these made you instantly cool...

32.And if you've clapped together two erasers and saw that big giant toxic cloud of smoke...

A dusty chalkboard eraser rests on a ledge beneath a chalkboard — John Phelan -

Then, guess what? You are officially old. Congrats!

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