David Hoffman Has Some Fun With 1950s High School Dress Codes. Did They Work? 

This Is Another Wonderful 1950s Memory - ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-lLihBNLvVWc.html David Hoffman Filmmaker

Yes, girls wore dresses. I still remember a freezing cold Winter day in elementary school when one of my (female) classmates committed the sin of arriving at school wearing pants. When they called her Dad to come get her he refused, saying it was too cold to wear a dress. Remember, at the time we were expected to be outside for recess. Wearing a dress at recess was problematic on several levels. Her Dad’s demand that she be allowed to wear pants was a turning point. From then on common sense prevailed. We still wore dresses/skirts, right up through high school graduation, but were allowed to wear pants in cold weather…REALLY cold weather. I haven’t worn a dress in over 20 years, since leaving the corporate work environment. Thank you Megan’s Dad!

I was a child in the 50's, I remember my Dad arguing with my Mom about pedal pushers. my mother wanted to buy some pedal pushers, but my dad was against it. I distinctly remember him saying angrily to my mom "If women start wearing pedal pushers, the next thing you know they will be wearing pants."

My mother graduated valedictorian in 1954 in Georgia. She was so poor that she wore the same brown corduroy skirt to skirt every day even after it became smooth. She had one sweater set. She started working at age 14 but had to give all but .10 to her parents every week. She worked at Penny's for four years. Went to school, walked to work, had to pay a neighbor to take her home every night. He molested her, but she never told anyone. I wish you had done documentaries about about these young people.

In the late ‘50’s in UK school teachers used a cane to beat you with, when I came to the US I discovered they used a wooden paddle. Punishments I never experienced from my parents! Thankfully I never experienced either but came extremely close, once a teacher accused me of riding my bicycle in the playground, actually all I did was kick my pedal backwards while waiting in line to ride to soccer practice. Nobody ever considers that some teacher are just lousy at their job, some are sociopaths.

David. This is interesting. In my small, midwestern town, the dress code was very stringent. The boys were required to wear dress pants and a button down shirt. The girls had to wear dresses or skirts and blouses. This was in the sixties in my high school years. Denim jeans and t-shirts were not allowed. It seemed to us the rest of the country were allowed to wear whatever they wanted! One day, in protest to the dress code, a close friend of mine decided to do his own protest against the status quo. That eventful morning Leslie showed up at school dressed in a white tee shirt, lily white jeans with his head shaved bald. He also had pierced his right ear and had a large gold earring prominently displayed. In his left hip pocket he had a bottle of Mr. Clean to announce his intention. What happened to Leslie for this stunt, which really hurt no one and caused considerable merriment? For his perceived insolence against the city fathers and the school board Leslie was expelled. This was his senior year and not much Hope was proffered him without that high school diploma. Leslie had to make his point though and we admired him for that. In the end things turned out well for Leslie . Our high school principle didn’t agree with the school board about Leslie. As we left school in the afternoon we would see Leslie heading in to the principal’s office where Mr. Tucker spent countless hours helping Leslie complete his requirements for his high school diploma. At our graduation ceremony in 1969, the principle was determined to hand the earned diploma to Leslie. He put him last in line and when the time came he called his name and Leslie received his rightfully earned accreditation. That act caused Mr. Tucker his job. The school board promptly fired him but Mr. Tucker didn’t flinch. He did what was the right thing to do and never regretted it!

These days, society is fortunate that I've chosen to wear clothing. Sometimes.

Clearly David Hoffman was what we called a "square" in those days. The big problem with teenagers in the 50's was their parents. They had grown up in the depression, lived through the war years and thought we should all look like soldiers and be subject to the same level of discipline.

In high school I made a tiny boomerang with weighted tips and would launch it with a rubber band at the back of the teacher at the black board. It would sail near to the back of her head and return to me and I would reach up and catch it. It always caused a chuckle and one day someone else grabbed it and broke it. I could never make another that flew so well. Also I would launch book match rockets but the smoke trail would give me away so only did that when the teacher was out of the room. Probably why I become a pilot. I like flying things.

It’s interesting to see how dress codes have changed over the years. I go to a high school in Texas and sometimes it looks like people just roll out of bed and walk to school. Thanks for the quality content as always!

The brassier the girl in the thumbnail is wearing looks like the front bumper on my 1955 Buick Century. Ahh to be young and in love...I'll never forget that car.

i just graduated from australian catholic school and it’s still like this to this day, below the knee, studs only earrings, knee socks. how funny

I remember these horrible heated arguments between my mother and my teenage sister in the 1960s about what clothing she should or shouldn't wear... It all seems so ridiculous now. I think the girls suffered a lot more than the guys over this .

David knows how to choose thumbnails

I wish our public education had a class or some kind of curiculum focused on cultural history like this. Maybe some American schools had classes like this, but certainly not mine. I personally think History is far too focused on the so-callled "great" events and people and we miss out on the essential context of daily life. I think that's why I'm so attracted to this channel so thanks my guy

David really was the cool, student body president type that got good grades, had lots of friends, supported everyone, and stood up for people, and I really appreciate that

Mr. Hoffman's films reflect the affluent high schools near major urban centers. Hicksville, in this case, is within a short drive of NYC. It isn't representative of smaller schools. In small town America in 1957, students were neither so affluent nor so worldly. The interstate highway system was still being built, and rural students seldom saw a major city of any kind until they graduated. I didn't see a college campus until basketball coaches invited me to visit my senior year. Life in small towns was insular, isolated, with radio and TV our only connection to the larger world. It was like looking at Wonderland through a keyhole. Rural schools were small (under 900 students in the top six grades); teachers knew every student personally, and their families. If you were struggling in school, the teacher wrote your Mom a personal note or talked with her on the street. The available fashions for girls were similar to those depicted here, but only the daughters of professional or mercantile families wore them. The majority of girls couldn't afford trendy clothes, and the range of apparel was narrower and more utilitarian than depicted here, especially for farm girls. To distinguished themselves, the girls used colorful accessories. Boys were permitted to wear jeans; many blue collar families could not afford anything better. Nearly all of the boys, even those from elite families, bought their clothing from a Sears catalog. You didn't get new clothes until the old ones wore thin or you out-grew them. I owned one sport coat and one pair of wool slacks -- for attending formal dances and church on Sunday. But there was a dress code, primarily affecting girls, that prohibited slacks and skirts that were too tight, blouses and sweaters that were too revealing, and hemlines that were too high. One object of the code was to keep us all virgins, and in those days, before the Pill, 99% of us made it to graduation still innocent. The second purpose, explicitly stated, was to teach us to learn proper dress for the workplace after graduation. We were all very focused on the future and making a success of ourselves. It was part of the general discipline enforced in high schools at that time -- and that proved effective, too.

Dad always wore a white t-shirt, jeans, rolled up at bottom, leather jacket. Mom in her sexy tight skirts, tight blouse and sweaters. 1957 onwards. They loved doing the Stroll.. lol I still have my clothes from the 70's, funny the styles coming back. Great video!

Mr Hoffman has done some incredible work with all these historic films.

Did NOT expect to see a 1957 David. So freaking cool. I was a sophomore in high school in the year 2014. Twitter existed, Skinny jeans, the Kpop generation was really popular, etc. So crazy how stark the difference is, and it makes the video that much more exhilarating. Please do post more throwbacks!

I was born in 1950, but I had older cousins and babysitter. I recall popits which were fun and pedal pushers.I was 7 years old and of course the cool clothes did not come in my size. My mother cut off a pair of slacks and hemed them to pedal pusher length just like the big girls wore. When I went to HS the dress code was strict.

I remember in 1965 when a boy walking down the hallway in 9th grade was accosted by a teacher and forced to tuck in his shirt. Back then every boy tucked in his button down shirt while at school. They mostly wore plaid.

Born ironically enough on 9/11/1950, I was a late boomer but in Waco, TX via James Connally Air Force Base at Lacy Lakeview Elementary in 1959-1962; Dad was a Psychiatrist in the USAF and then we moved to Wiesbaden, Germany in 1963. I offer this short bio to comment on 'Dress codes" . I use to think that school uniforms was a bad idea, but now I realize that it's a lot simpler to have one. Teenagers dress according to strict rules. Social, school, or peer; saves money to have a blue shirt, khaki pants, and black shoes.

I was blessed to go to Andrews' School for Girls in Willoughby, Ohio, from 1953 to 1957. I loved it so much. The Girls basically ran the school. If your behaviour was not acceptable, you were no invited back for the next year. We all worked as hard as we could to be able to stay there. We had Students' Court, run by the Seniors. We had a dress code and discipline, but it did not come from the Teachers. It worked brilliantly.

I graduated high school in 66 in southern California. The dress code was different at each school. Hollywood High was a lot different than most. Almost 20 years after I graduated I worked for the school district for 14 years. The students were the same. The girls trying to get the attention of brain dead teenage boys with sexy clothing. It was quite a sight seeing girls walking to school in shorts in freezing weather. Shivvering like crazy but they discovered the power of legs and they were not going to give it up.

Quite interesting to see as a current teen... wow how different styles were back in the 50’s😂

Fun film! It took me back to my schooling in the 60's and early 70's. The 60's was a transition from Peter Pan collars to vivid colors, prints and boots! Late 60's transitioned into peasant blouses, navy bell bottoms/jeans and sandals. We'd get our bell bottoms at an Army surplus store. My sister and I attended one year of boarding school. I remember my father telling us that uniforms were great for kids because everyone looked the same. No competition. We didn't believe it for a minute. But amazingly enough, I grew to like uniforms for school. You didn't have to think about what to wear every morning. And it was nice to look like everyone else. Now, I'm retired and I've given up fancy clothes and makeup and they can bury me in my blue jeans. I'm happy being barefoot and comfortable! Thanks for the trip down memory lane! P.S. Those Navy bell bottoms from the Army Surplus store were the bomb! lol!

If they thought that shit was over the top, they should see the things some teens do now.

David, I don't usually comment much, but I just have to say I enjoy the heck out of your videos. I'm in my early 30s and feel like I'm finally understanding what it means to "remember another time". I think this new viewpoint has really opened a new interest in past times and your channel has just been a treasure trove. You have such an amazing collection! I also really enjoy your insight before most of your videos. You're one cool Boomer!

My mother went to this Hicksville, NY high school she would have graduated in 1957 but she met my father who was a couple of years older and had a motorcycle and a leather jacket. She left school and eventually got her GED married my father and it all worked out. Thanks once again for giving us a time machine through your lens. Love history especially Long Island history!

I remember crinolines and poodle skirts, tying small silk scarves around our necks with a top button open...or sometimes two if you escaped notice. We also had saddle shoes. Perhaps the weirdest thing we girls wore were brassieres that resembled the nosecones of rockets...in my strapless prom dress if I turned to the side my top continued to point forward. Pop beads were definitely a must have item that was often confiscated because we played with them in class. We rolled our skirts up at the waist to get shorter hems, and when the pencil skirt arrived, even though I weighed 98 pounds and had to run around in the shower to get wet...I had to wear a girdle just in case anything wiggled. The dress codes didn’t work as planned, we always found ways to style up, and as soon as school was out the leather jackets and jeans appeared as if by magic on the “bad” boys, and girls hemlines rose by a couple of inches while an extra button might accidentally pop open. They were times when a wardrobe malfunction, like a slip showing could embarrass you for a whole day, or boys snapping the back of our bras was both titillating and mortifying at the same time. Thank you for another trip into my youth.🖤🇨🇦

50’s Classrooms: *Students casually speaking amongst themselves* (Teacher walks in) Teacher: _WHAT KIND OF BEHAVIOR IS THIS!?!?_ Modern Day Classroom: *Students cursing, insulting one another and preoccupied with their Smart Phones* Teacher: Okay class, settle down now, we have some Cornell Notes to take today.

Oh my gosh, my Mom and her fashion addiction, lasted until she passed, started in the 50s. Ive got photos of her 1950s persona! The Peter Pan collar, pedal pushers the DA hairstyle. Yes. ❤️

OK, I graduated in 1958 a little shy of age 18. I do not remember written dress codes. I do remember crinolines, bobby sox, pedal pushers which we were not allowed to wear except on Fridays for pep day. I do remember those pointed bras but was never able to carry off because I didn’t have anything to fill them up with. We were more restricted by the social norms rather than dress codes. Our skirts were mid length between the knee and the ankle. Most of us didn’t want to be seen as different. When the 1960s hit it was all mini skirts, go go boots, etc. By that time I was married and was too busy and harassed by 3 kids in 3 years to be worried about what was socially acceptable.

Yow those are some weirdly shaped bra's. I'm starting to understand why they used to call them Torpedos.

when I was interviewed for my teaching job, the Principal asked how I felt about long hair on boys. I said, "as long as the hair didn't keep him from hearing and or block the view of the person behind him, I didn't see a problem. They must have been desperate for a teacher, because they hired me. Worst thing that ever happened, looking back. Jan. 1969.

I remember around 1960 when the girls at my school had to kneel down on the floor whenever the teacher told them to. If their skirts touched the ground when they knelt down that was OK. Otherwise they sent you home to change. I know, sounds bizarre but it was an everyday thing. We were always trying to get around the rules anyway we could. We were the defiant ones.

Awesome video! As a 23-year old that has no memory before the 2000s, it is always fascinating to hear you talk about youth and society from your younger years

This channel has been magical for me, I'm a 27 year old Australian fulla who had an idea of these different periods based mostly on Hollywood film... but to come across these interviews, this footage, I am having the time of my life watching it all! Learning so much! Thank you for your work mate!

Brings back memories. I went to high school in the fifties and saw the attempted enforcement of dress codes. The only thing that worked in that high school was no trousers on girls. Some girls would go bra less under those tight sweaters. Ahhh, tight sweaters, blouses and tight skirts, talk about distractions in classrooms, and in the halls. I finished high school in 1954 and went to work for the U.S. Government and saw many women in the offices dressing the same way, pointy bras and all. And not just the young women, there were some well into middle age who had the figures to carry it off.

“We had money back then”, love the 2020 depression days.

My high school didn’t get rid of the dress code till 1971. Oh those awful days of waiting for the bus in the cold in a skirt and knee socks.

My husband was watching this with me and was just flabbergasted that in the 20's boys had to wear hats, because here in Sweden, that is the only thing being debated, whether students should be allowed to wear hats/hoodies! These kids don't have any dress code at all, which was pretty surprising to me!

Makes more sense of why my mother (whom graduated in the 60s) had such strong views when my middle school (late 90s) wanted to do a strict dress code. If I remember correctly we had to wear a polo in the school colors, khakis with a belt or a below the knee skirts (there was a couple choices of skirt fabrics allowed that I don't remember, though I believe I wore a Jean skirt that was ok). My mother got pretty radical about the dress code and ended up putting me in a different school.

For girls Buster Brown white anklets vs the rolled or thick cuffed bobby socks. Under the flared skirt, sometimes a hoop slip with one or two sets of starched crinolines. The 40's black and white saddle oxfords OR the Rock n Roll saddle oxfords with the tiny belt buckle at the heel and a more streamline shoe. The jumper-skirt with a very wide waist band that fitted below the breast and same cloth straps that may or may not have crossed at the back. The skirt zippers were found on the left side of the skirt. Fitted/straight/tight skirts always had a lining. The lightweight cardigan sweater was worn backwards with the buttons running down the back. The girls always wore a "foundation" girdle under the straight skirt----maybe the Skippy Formfit by Rogers. In the early 50's there were really not many Teen dress shops---except in higher-end department stores and for the upper middle class, so that meant you wore mom's or older sis' altered skirts or dresses changed into jumpers. At the very beginning of the sixties, the Boomers were seeing more teen clothing at dress shops and dept stores in general. Depending on the skirt or dress fabric, hems were 2 to 4 inches wide---not serged edged and turned over like today. Don't forget the $5 transistor radio running on one 9V battery, and the very small, lightweight record player running on C batteries. At St Vincent Academy, Albq, you wore bobby socks over the white anklet sock, and outside the school fence you peeled the bobby socks off and went on school grounds wearing klunky saddle oxfords and white plain anklet socks. NM

Well, well, well! Let me tell you a story. In 1972, I transferred to Far Rockaway HS. It was the time of black cultural explosions, afros and political awareness, and of course the anti Vietnam era. I started wearing the African gailee, a type of turban. I was ordered to remove it but refused. Suspended, I started a campaign, got the entire school to do a walk out, it was very organized, even my Jewish friends stood with me. We stood on the perimeter of the building in silence. The police were called, the Bd. Of Ed, it was something! AND I WON! There is a pic in the 1973 yearbook of me in that gailee addressing the newly formed Black Student Union as its president. Wow did this bring back memories!

I remember a Quantum Leap episode about certain powerful adults who wanted to control the music by shutting down rock and roll. They didn’t win.

David Hoffman, your stories of the 50s and 60s are incredibly fascinating to me. My father was born in 1955, I love listening to his childhood stories. Times were certainly different.

Graduated in 1963 from Northview High School in Covina CA. The girl's skirt length was tested by the girl kneeling. If the skirt touched the ground, it was long enough. I wore "ivy league" pants and button-down shirts. Many. of us wore Pendelton shirts over short sleeve white shirts (and skinny dark ties) for a more formal look.

Positive motivation works so much better than strict discipline.

Im going to college to be a teacher and plan to one day use you many of your videos as historical documents, keep em coming mr hoffman!

The black and white video is wonderfully done. Brilliant stuff. Today there are millions of high school graduates that done even know how to do simple arithmatic, percentages, ratios, etc. We have not only regressed, in many ways collapsed. Private school students will be the ones carrying the torch not the public school fallout survivors.

I love this channel, I'm absolutely fascinated by David's story telling and ability to give us a look at those years as if we were there.

We wore what our parents could afford when I was in school. I didn't own a sport coat until I was in college. I bought the sport coat from a used clothing store. I also had to work and pay for my college education.

Such a fine line between the two approaches, yet a huge result! I believe that today children are given choices that exceed their ability to make decisions, then bailed out far too easily. Quite a thought provoking video.

When the 60,s rolled around , the bras were gone, sandals were worn, t shirts , shorts & mini skirts, were common.. Slogans ,buttons, & patches against the war & for marijuana were everyday attire. These teachers would've had a heart attack. 😁. Kids weren't silent anymore when I was in HS Students were finding the voice of a new, & changing generation . Interesting film. ⚡

Let's all take a moment to appreciate the acting Mr. Grimes did in the video. He had two vastly different personalities.

I have been in that math teacher's shoes...once you lose the respect of your students you are in for constant discipline problems...no fun at all. I feel for the teacher because I know how frustrating it is to be in his shoes. I also feel for the students because I recognize their significant frustration too.

Sounds like a poltergeist when mr grimes turns around with books dropping every five seconds. I love this 😍💕💜! Teens are all the same

David, I was a sophomore at Sequoia HS Redwood City Ca. In 1957. Us guys wore Pendleton shirts, Levi jeans (never washed) and black leather stomper shoes. Combed our hair into a duck tail slathered with Wild Root Cream Oil. But Southern Ca. guys wore short sleeve shirts colored cotton pants , white buck shoes and flat top hair cuts. Even the music was different. We loved Rhythm and Blues, KDIA San Fran.They liked Beach boy type stuff. Just stumbled across your channel. Great stuff. I'm in!

Mr. Grime's "Math-ah-matics" class was rough!!! His stress level was off the charts!!

I didn't want this teaching to end.

By the 1970's I was bringing flowerpots down to Hicks Gardens and Exotic Gardens and finally Old Westbury Gardens from my pottery shop in Ct... .. You had so many "Garden Stores " on Long Island that it got me as a young potter making flowerpots .. When I started at my Art prep school in 1966 we were still asked not to ware blue jeans to the academic classes .It was said to "show respect for the class " .Coat & Jacket at dinner .. By my senior year of 1970 it was all over (Though we still wore a jacket to dinner ) ... Thanks for the clip ..

Love seeing the vintage, tasteful black pics.

David click baited me with someone grandmas and showed me an educational video what a guy.

"Old Grimes, or 'Grimey', as he liked to be called, was a pretty good egg."

Love your videos David. I wasn't alive back then, born in the 80's, but it's awesome getting a glimpse into the past. And your storytelling is commanding. Keep it up!

So happy I went to high school in the mid 2000's, I was a scene kid, big hair, I even added random hair extension pieces, dyed my hair green, all the guys who where scene had long big hair, lots of hair spray, skinny jeans, tight band shirts, fitted sweaters and jackets, vans or boots,

My high school in the mid 80’s in New Zealand had similar rules for clothes. Uniforms with rules for skirt lengths, earrings forbidden. Most schools here still do.

Style is only social camouflage, it allows one to blend in so that you don't get singled out.

I liked our dress code back in the 90s, there was less pressure to dress provocatively than I think girls feel now.

This is just as fascinating as the other videos, if not my favourite. Your videos are all so well made, they feel like documentaries. Sometimes I feel so lucky to have such good quality, informative and beautiful videos available for free on RU-vid. Sincerely, Robert

I love what you talk about at about 8:00 minutes in. I’m in my 40s and I’m already shocked at how my generation is now romanticizing the 80s and 90s, acting like it was somehow better or different than now. In a lot of ways, it’s much better from what I observe of my own children’s current experience!! I think our brains forget the hard stuff as a coping mechanism, but it really never helps the younger generations. It always alienates teens from adults and that always results in disaster. Be accepting and open to the younger generations!!

Mr. Hoffman, thank you for doing this. These are very important stories and information. This is the type of stories and information my father would share with me and my sister from his high school years in the early 50's. Being able to see it really brings it to life with a great impact. Thank you.

Thanks David. And thanks for including the entirety of the PSA documentaries.

I remembered the 50s I was in school and saw these styles . Also when you travel by plane then you dress up in suits, heels , etc. Now it's more like a bus station , everyone is so sloppy and it's no longer a treat to travel

"Hey! Teacher! Leave those kids alone!" "You! Yes, you! Stand still, laddy"

In 1969 I was in eighth grade and they scrapped dress codes. High school too. All the rules were discarded. Yet elements remained of them. I knew a hybrid of old and new.

My class was 1957 and I experienced some of what you describe. I went to high school in New Hampshire and in Arizona. In NH the kids dressed as you described but I was not aware of any dress code from the school. In Arizona, (Tucson) the dress standard for boys was: blue Levis and a white t-shirt; all year long. Those were the days.

Great vid, Mr Hoffman, as always. My mom has told me she remembered having skirts being a certain length and that her senior year they were allowed to pants, not form fitting either, no shorts. While over discipline, we all remember a time when the teacher could use corporal punishment,in the classroom, for her she said even rulers on palms. Catholic/military schools were harder on pupils in that regard my dad says.

There was a real fine, loving teacher at my high school in Indianapolis back in the 1960's who was very much loved by the teachers, students, and faculty members. In fact, this man had literally the same way of teaching all his 45 plus years in the subject he taught: Mathematics. With a heart for learning...loving mankind at all age levels and seeing the good potential in everybody, his style was unique. This man was also a lover of poetry and fine music. He even published a booklet called "All My Best" in 1967 for anyone to read his passions of life, education, and loyalty to his his high school he taught at all those years: Lawrence Central. Mr. Shyrl Craig was a "one-of-a-kind" and was honored by having a junior high school named in his name back in the early 1970's. Mr. Craig was not one of my teachers in the four years at L.C. (Math was a subject I did poorly in no matter who's class I was in). When he retired in the late 1960's...the school lost one of its best. His style of teacher was very much like the "correct way of teaching" teacher shown in this video. Some of the "old days ways" in dress and manners IS terribly missed in hearing about and seeing in the 21st Century kids of adolescent and teens...let alone elementary kids by us "baby boomers". Sometime in the very early 1970's after I graduated from high school, the students "got their protest ways" established by the growing "anti-establishment" society of the mid to late 1960's. That hurt me some in seeing "liberal dress" among the students at schools. It bothers me a lot more as the decades go by.

i'm surprised that freethenipple movement is even a thing in the US, I remember in the 50s-70s it was already a thing. I don't know what happened.

16:20 “mass punishment is a dangerous weapon, and doesn’t work too well” they still did that at my school, I only finished year 12 in 2018, that and I went to a private school.

I wish I could count how many times I was sent to the principal's office and spanked with the board. They offered to call my dad instead of the pattle but I said no thanks. You have to stop at 3. My dad is just warming up at 3.

Fashion was so amazing no matter how you cut it this is really interesting

TYVM 🦋 David Hoffman always enjoy your videos 🌟Listening from Mass USA🌟Hello🌟 everyone

I first saw the beginning clip in the late '70s. Cool commentary, as usual. Thank you!

Mr Grimes wasn't playing around at first. The role reversal earned him respect since he began respecting the students. Cool vintage films, love the 50s narrator voice.

I graduated from a Southern California high school in 1968. I love that David has brought us this. Girls that came to school then in short skirts, were made to kneel in the vice-principal's office. He then measured the length from the floor to the bottom of her skirt. If shorter than six inches (I think!), then she was sent home to change clothes. As a science teacher for 32 years, I love the teaching approach.

As a high school student in an all-white conservative unofficially-christian academy in Mississippi, we had very strict dress codes. No hair that met your shoulders, no facial hair, no skirts of a certain length. On the latter, the teachers would measure the length between the seam and her knees. What was unsettling is that 'spanking' was an official form of punishment; usually by a male teacher or principal...on teenage female students. I still think Indianola Academy owes me for my therapy sessions decades later. Hehe.

Thank you David, always Fun to Watch this!😀

Great stuff. Thanks for sharing this history and your own experience!

In second grade, I actually got sent to the principal for having an oil spot on my dress. Like I had any control over my laundry at that age. The same woman denied me my milk carton because I didn't hear my name called. Well, my neighbor came down to the school and ripped her a new one. Was treated really nice after that.

Keep up the great work! I love learning about the 50s. Even though I wasn't born in that era, I feel like I would have fit right in with everyone else

Fine line .. which is very hard to find,, between pure good discipline and NOT BREAKING a young persons good Spirit..

David, don't let your videos end without your input, summarize, summarize, summarize!

I grew up in Hicksviile. I went to that junior high for 9th grade in 63-64. I gradusted from Hicksville High in 1967. I remember things being pretty much as you describe it. I went to St. Ignatius Loyola grammar school in town. That's a whole other video! Life was simple. We were happy and carefree. Thanks for the memories.

I thought Mr. Grimes was lame, but then I realized he is awesome!

I enjoyed this - in my school, my grade-year was the last year with the older, strict dress code. I did observe that the harder adults tried to "control" young people, the greater the backlash. But, true to my generation, I kept my thoughts to myself and "did my apprenticeship', biding my time until I was old enough to be an adult with what I thought would be more freedom.. Hahaha!

Thank you so much for your work. I feel like a time traveler and understand my grandparents and mother so much more.