East Gull Lake School Memories by Diane Baakkonen Eksten
East Gull Lake School Memories
By Diane Baakkonen Eksten
The one class room school house took in grades first through 6th when I started in 1952. There was no kindergarten or early preschool at that time. One teacher taught all 6 classes in that one room and would bring each grade up to the front table to give them assignments, answer questions and/or review old assignments. Then that grade would go back to their desks to do their assignments while the next class came to the front table with the teacher.
Each grade consisted of no more than 4 to seven students and the entire school population was 28 to 30. Needless to say, the teacher had to have control of the students. Teachers back then were allowed to paddle the students and parents supported the teacher. Parents and the community go to know each teacher through school pot luck picnics and other gatherings.
My favorite community gathering was the Christmas Program. Every student had a part in the Christmas program – whether it was in a skit, reciting a poem or singing. (Well, I do remember one Christmas where one of the students could not carry a tune and his voice would put everyone else off key. So the teacher had him just mouth the words. I would mention his name, but he is now a lawyer so – I won't.) All the families came to the Christmas program and it felt like we were all part of a loving community. We knew our neighbors and cared about them. The Christmas programs always concluded with everyone singing Christmas carols and of course a visit from Santa Clause with bags of candy handed out.
My first memories of going to school included being picked up and riding to school in a large van. This was before my dad drove the school bus. Myrtle Ylinen drove the van and to keep us quiet she would sing to us. Wow, that woman had a beautiful voice!
Like most kids in grade school, my favorite time was recess. We didn't have a lot of playground equipment – just a swing set where if the boys pumped the swings high enough they would go all the way over-around the top. (I believe they have safety equipmenton the swings now – so that can't happen.) The best times I remember during recess were playing in the woods behind the school. We were allowed to play there until the teacher would ring a bell, letting us know recess was over. (Sometimes we would go deeper into the woods until we couldn't hear thebell.) We also built forts in those woods. It was great fun – that is until the boys got a little creative and built a two story fort. Well, I guess they were not all that creative as the 2nd floor fell down on one of the girls. That was the end of our being able to build forts.
When I graduated into 7th grade and had to go to school in Brainerd, it was a real culture shock going from a grade class of 5 to a class of 400 students in junior high. The close community feel was gone but I have to say, academically I was up to grade standard so I did learn while having fun at the country school.
As I look back on my days of growing up in East Gull Lake, I feel extremely blessed having memories such as riding on the hay wagon when my dad hauled hay, going to the country school, playing in the snow, ice skating on the lake, and spending lazy summer days floating on an inner tube with my cousin up and down the lake shore looking for agates. I grew up in a great period in time in the beautiful area of East Gull Lake. I was truly blessed.