Remembering No. 6 School in WNY, NJ

Grammar School

Met a woman who went to No 6 school in West New York—brought back memories—of grammar school, now called grade school or elementary school—and my teachers--

Miss Smith: For the first day of kindergarten, my mother put some fancy clothing on me—with tricky buttons—worst happened: in school I had to go to the bathroom—Miss Smith, bless her, saw my agony & took me to the bathroom, untied my shorts—
She also left me back—told me that I was needed to help the new kids—but my mother, summoned to school, was told that I was left back because I was immature—Miss Smith had misinterpreted something that had happened & I didn’t know how to explain it to her--
Mrs Horowitz: Lovely woman—I knew how to count, and she called me The Number Boy—I once wrote on a pad on my desk, I AM SOUPERMAN – sic -- she called in another teacher, Miss Salinger, to see it—I didn’t know why—I thought I was in trouble—
Bernard Schlesinger said he would marry Ms Schlesinger—I said she’d be too hold—the teachers laughed-
Lucille Battaglia and I skipped—Miss Smith was called in to see the two kids who were skipping—she stared at me in amazement—I learned not long ago that Donald N, smart guy who like me went to Columbia, was also left back in kindergarten--

Miss Hendershot: We made a class newsletter--

Miss Borg: Once lined up all her class according to their supposed intelligence—I was in the middle—then she demoted me further down--last ranked, a very poor, mentally challenged boy, began to cry—even Miss B recognized she had done something wrong—that boy once tapped me on the shoulder, boasted that he had gotten three right on a spelling test—I said three WRONG? No, three right— I was shocked--

Miss Lomax: Angry, very homely woman—summoned my mother to school, complained to her that I was always fidgeting—
A painful memory: I was always getting humiliated in school (I had trouble paying attention) and actually prayed one night that my humiliations would end--

Miss Humphrey: Ideal teacher—warm and child-loving—we read Mr Popper’s Penguins, Huckleberry Finn

Miss Bergman: I was her pet—during the war years, I gave her difficult-to-get nylon stockings for Xmas—whole class was astonished—my mother had connections—
Brought in my cat one day, for show-your-pet day—cat pooped in the corner—When Miss B came in and asked where my cat was, all the kids giggled & pointed to the poop—(kids can be cruel)

Miss Parsek-Woods Angry woman, taught science—I got perfect grades, 100s, but she didn’t notice—so I stopped studying & now got average grades—she lit into me because my scores dropped—unfair!--very sexy woman, despite all—

Miss Thomas: My nemesis-- really had it in for me—once made me and Frank V stay after school to do some cleaning—and as punishment for something--then let Frank go early—as he was leaving, he gestured to me sympathetically: Sorry you have to stay—

Mrs. LaRosa – Gave us free periods all the time, so she could chat with her relative, Miss Cornell—shame on her--