Schools will open tomorrow.
Still remember your first day at school?
Did you cry your eyes out when you saw so many strangers in your midst?
Did you bawl your lungs out when your mother walked out from your classroom leaving you all on your own?
Did you pee on your seat when you can’t hold on to your bladder and was afraid to ask the teacher for permission to visit the loo?
These are some of the dramas seven-year olds will create when they went to school for the first time.
For some, first day at school can be very stressful; for others, it’s like a walk in the park.
Oh yes, by the way, this is the school bag I carried on my first day to school in 1971! 🙂
It was a hand-me-down stuff which I got from my elder sister. It had served me my entire primary school years.
Amazingly, it was still in good shape despite being made from rattan which was such a vulnerable material. The color was much lighter then but over the years, it got dirtied by constant use. I used to put it on the floor. Sometimes it got wet when I was caught in the rain.
My daughter laughed when I shown her this bag. “Nothing will make me carry this type of bag!” she said. But it was popular among school girls at that time.
How about you? What bag did you used on your first day at school?
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188 Hugh Low Street, Ipoh 
Haa, a good recall ! Here is my short story.
I was not fortunate enough to go to kindergarden and as such my first day to school was straight to Standard One and i have been told that by play friends that when it is time to go back, you will hear the school ‘alarm’ goes off. You know what ?? When the 10.30am tea break alarm goes off, i took my stuff and walk straight home, which was a good 1.5 miles away. Nobody seems to be obstructing me all along the way out of the school gate. My mum ask me why i got back so early and i told her maybe it was the first day of school. An hour after i got home, my class teacher came along my house on her bicycle.! She was so shocked to see me at home, but was relieved that i was safe, anyway. She told my mum that she has been looking everywhere for me after the morning coffee break !
The school bag i had was almost exactly the same as yours in the photo. At that time, it was quite a common school bag for the poor. When i was in Std5 at St. Michael’s Institution, Ipoh, my cousins from Bangkok was visiting us in Ipoh and when she saw me using that kind of bag, she laughed and shouted at me from the balcony that i had brought the “wrong bag” to school. She asked my mum “how come i go to school using a grocery basket”. Well, it certainly looks like the kind of bags ladies use when they go to wet market, right ?
Happy New Year To You IpohGal.
May the year ahead brings you and your family improving health, bountiful of wealth and lots of joy and happiness 😉
Thank you, John, for your sharing and wishes. And I laughed knowing that you too, used to carry this kind of bag to school. Happy New Year 2013 to you and your family too. 🙂
My classmate, Dr. Ted Mah, related his first day in school.
I started school at Sam Tet at the age of 7 and I recalled the first day at school well. My mum walked me to the school and I was quickly put into a rather hot and jammed classroom with many parents peering through the many windows making sure their love ones were behaving themselves. One of the first questions was “did you brush your teeth and wash you face this morning?” Many of us, including me, shacked our heads, but I saw my mum nod emphatically, so I quickly followed.
………….
I recalled being smacked in the hand by teachers using wooden rulers for misbehaving, which was rather painful and I soon learned to only misbehave when the teachers are not looking.
The full text by Dr. Mah.
http://sam-tet-alumni.com/STF5-1974-5S1/Mah_Tat_Sing.htm
Hi 16LeechStreet,
Thanks for the sharing and now I know you are a good photographer! 🙂
My mother bought this school bag for me & my classmate laugh at me. Eventually my mom bought me another after she was convinced that boys used a different type of bag. Aiyoo… imagine what all the remarks I have to tolerate.
Poor John, no wonder you were being laughed at. But I remember my brother also used to carry this kind of bag. 🙂 The green canvas bags came later.
I remember this type of bag.My sister used it!
I hope she still keeps it. 🙂
Thank you for your “First day in school” blog with nostalgic memories of your schooldays in Ipoh.
I am pleased to share the “First Day in School” blog at:
http://blogtoexpress.blogspot.sg/2010/12/3d-blog-first-day-in-school.html
Different places, different times, different experiences of schooldays in Singapore and Malaysia for everyone to share.
Regards.
Thimbuktu
Hi James,
I should be the one to thank you for your interesting link. 🙂 Looking through those black and white photos, I could relate to some of them, especially the one with grandma feeding the girl home-cooked food during recess at the canteen but it was not my grandma but my mom. 🙂
I can’t help noticing so many similarities for kids on their first day at school..in Ipoh and at Bukit Swee Ho in Singapore. 🙂
Oh, you still have your first bag? That is simply awesome! I wish I kept mine. I carried a similar one too. Such a precious item 🙂 This rattan bag is way better than all the fancy cartoon canvas bags 🙂
Hi Barb,
I wish I have kept my uniform and text books as well! 🙂