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Mapledene Junior & Infants School

We had two poems to learn over one particular weekend and would be required to recite from each in front of the class, Darius the Mede and 'Snow' . I left it late until Sunday evening to learn both and panicked cos Darius was missing off my two side sheet of copy paper. I learned Snow with a 50/50 chance of getting away with it. Never been a betting man but Snow came in for me that Monday. Saddly I only remmeber the first lines that jmadone has quoted! I have tried to find the other poem but without success , despite recalling one or two lines. For the record here is Darius - also the lyrics of a jazz song in 1920's
https://www.poetrynook.com/poem/daniel-0
Happy days!
 
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I do remember our Choral speaking with Mr Bates and this poem, standing on the stage in front of all the school and parents, reciting from memory but I'm sure it was a shortened version. I don't think we could have coped with the full length version.
Another one we learnt and recited was by the same author and entitled Darius the Mede.
I still remember the first line,
Darius the Mede was a King and a wonder,
His eye was proud and his voice was thunder................

Having looked it up on Google, again I'm sure we only learnt and recited a portion of the full poem.
The full-length 'Congo' is a LOT longer! Perhaps we had an edited version as there are lines throughout the quoted Part 1 that stir a memory. I have no memory of 'Darius' at all. 'Tiger, tiger burning bright', wasn't that one of 'ours'?
 
The full-length 'Congo' is a LOT longer! Perhaps we had an edited version as there are lines throughout the quoted Part 1 that stir a memory. I have no memory of 'Darius' at all. 'Tiger, tiger burning bright', wasn't that one of 'ours'?
Can't remember that one until grammar school
 
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Juniors' Assembly Hall: 50th Anniversary. No wall bars or vaulting horses in my day! St. Andrews appeared to be doing a lot better too than it used to. Chairs! Standing only for us.
 
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Juniors' Assembly Hall: 50th Anniversary. No wall bars or vaulting horses in my day! St. Andrews appeared to be doing a lot better too than it used to. Chairs! Standing only for us.
Can just see the Saint Andrews plaque. For some reason St Andrews never did well.
I also went to the 50th Anniversary with my Mom - brought back memories of her taking me into school. Still have two exercise books from the infants c1958/59 from classes taught by Mrs Thomkins and Mrs Cornforth.
 
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Infants Christmas Play, 1960-61? Clearly based on 'The Three Little Pigs'! Did the 'Door' have as big a part as 'The Wolf'? (My brother was the pig behind the wolf).
 
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1961 Junior class 3/1 (and 3/2?) girls. Needlework class perhaps? Mr Barlow the thorn among the 'roses'; Miss Parker(?) the class teacher. Need to check with my sister! [Can't remember it being a problem at Mapledene but those coconut mats were not nice when doing 'topless' gymnastics at grammar school!]

Back row L-R: Christine Johnstone, Pauline Jones, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?
Mr Barlow,
Middle row L-R: ?, Jill Stringer, Pamela Cunningham, Kay Owen, ?, ?, Hazel Haddley, ? ?, Heather Stephenson, Pamela Shaw, ?, ?, ?
Front row L-R: ?, ?, ?, Pamela Hughes, Miss Parker, Janette Sutton, ?, Susan Davey, ?
 
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1961 Junior class 3/1 (and 3/2?) girls. Needlework class perhaps? Mr Barlow the thorn among the 'roses'; Miss Parker(?) the class teacher. Need to check with my sister! [Can't remember it being a problem at Mapledene but those coconut mats were not nice when doing 'topless' gymnastics at grammar school!]
Great photo. I think that the girl 5th from left, middle row is my sister.
 
I seem to recognise a few faces on this photo. Backrow: 2nd from left David Gray next to him Anton Rapps, the next four I can't remember, then I think Tony Orton and far right Robert Scholar. The only other one I recognise is in between Mr Bates and Mr Barlow and that's Roy Tinkler.
Trevor Glynn and a Paul can't remember last name had a twin sister
 
Welcome Pill. Thanks for identifying those students. If there’s anything else about the school you can recall I’m sure others will be interested.

Some nice photos on this thread. Thanks all. Viv.
 
I had been showing a friend an examination piece that my grandfather had made and that led to us talking about things that were made of wood but perhaps no longer were.

Even at the time it seemed strange but the council gardeners at Mapledene used massive wooden wheelbarrows whereas if our parents had one at all they would be made of steel sheet. The school halls were wooden tiled, blackboards were made and framed in solid wood and board rubbers were mostly wood, though I don't think thrown by teachers,that joy had to wait until we moved up a school! Teachers like Mr Whiting most likely had wood board rulers with a brass handle and if the caretaker ever appeared with a step-ladder that most certainly was made of wood. The domestic version was very good at pinching fingers when it folded up.
 
Seeing that my sister's mug wasn't on the table and having just made a fresh pot, I said, "No mug, no tea". That put me in mind of the Christmas parties at Mapledene when we were expected to bring in our own dish and spoon, (labelled with some sticking plaster tape). I wonder if any child missed out on the jelly because they forgot?
I distinctly remember bringing home my pump bag with those sugar strand-coated chocolate drops in the bottom, that came from a party. It didn't help the taste! Wasn't the party the last activity of that term?
 
A couple more pictures from 'the 50th'.
bhf002.jpgbhf003.jpg

Those entrance halls seemed far larger 'back in the day'! I am pretty certain that the 'top class', 4/1, didn't have an escape route in my day. Perhaps that was why it stopped being used as a form room. (It did have the best view in the school though!).
 
Not just Mapledene of course but 'Janet and John' was our first reading book. I carried the yellow Book One around for ages, I just couldn't 'crack it' then one day it all made sense and I read most of the series one after the other.

Many years later I think I worked out why it was so hard. Here is the first page of the body text with writing.
View attachment 138211

It's that letter 'a' that looked nothing like the round 'a' that the teacher drew. The same goes for all those horrible 'g's.

Oh for teachers that understand that we don't all see things the same way!
 
Not just Mapledene of course but 'Janet and John' was our first reading book. I carried the yellow Book One around for ages, I just couldn't 'crack it' then one day it all made sense and I read most of the series one after the other.

Many years later I think I worked out why it was so hard. Here is the first page of the body text with writing.
View attachment 138211

It's that letter 'a' that looked nothing like the round 'a' that the teacher drew. The same goes for all those horrible 'g's.

Oh for teachers that understand that we don't all see things the same way!
No probs with Tip and Mitten
 

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