Ten minutes to write. Less time to read.

At the beginning of August, my Ten Minutes A Day was on my first grade teacher, Mrs. Carey. Actually, it was how I couldn’t remember anything about her, except her name. So I asked for readers’ help in fleshing out the character of their first grade teachers.

Two people wrote in response, and I’ve gotten permission from each to share their impressions.

Kyle wrote: “My first grade teacher was Mrs. Marsiniack . . . although I’m pretty sure I’ve spelled her name wrong. My spelling abilities have only somewhat improved since the first grade. I basically remember what she looked like, and also her favorite saying. Anyone approaching her desk without first raising his/her hand would be informed, “You are invisible.”

As for developing her as a character I think that would be quite a challenge. As a first grader, I’m not sure I understood everyone’s role in the world. I never considered Mrs. Marsiniack as being my teacher for her job. To me, she just kind of lived in the room and was a teacher as if teachers were some alternate species of human being that just taught.”

I think Kyle’s description says as much about him as it does about Mrs. Marsiniack. Today, he is a computer wizard who likes the idea of being invisible and accepts that alternate life forms might exist. Perhaps this all started with the alternate species of human being called teacher.

Carol wrote: “Mrs. Porchey was my first grade teacher. There were two classrooms for each grade in the Crystal City Public School and I had the misfortune to be in Mrs. P’s. Her son was also a student in the same classroom and I wondered at the time how he must have felt to be her child in that classroom.

I remember her as being middle-aged (although at the age of six, anyone over 25 was considered middle-aged) and a bit thick through the middle. She was also extremely crabby. At least she was crabby with me. One time I did something that vexed her and she took me by the shoulders and shook me. When I went home to tell my mother and stepfather about the shaking I’d received, my stepdad became quite angry and said, “What does she think you are, a milkshake?”

Another incident occurred that I remember to this day. A girl in my class named Mary Jane was a slow learner. One would say today that she was being mainstreamed, but in 1949, that concept didn’t exist. Mary Jane was always dressed to the nines by her parents in fluffy, fancy dresses, and always, always wore black patent leather Mary Janes.

Two other girls in the class decided to play a trick on her. During recess one day, they convinced her that carbon paper was the equivalent of a paper towel and that she could dry her hands with it. When she did, of course, she got carbon all over her hands and her beautiful dress.

Mrs. Porchey immediately brought in the big gun, Estelle Bailey, the principal. They decided to punish all three girls by having Mary Jane stand at the front of the classroom, tell everyone how foolish she’d been, and to spank her. She cried so hard! The other two girls sobbed their apologies, but no physical punishment was forthcoming. It was so very cruel, especially for Mary Jane.

The next year I was blessed with having the beautiful and kind Miss Thusan as my second grade teacher. There is some justice in the world.”

If you have impressions of your first grade teacher you’d like to see out there on the Internet, send them to Anne@AnneBrandt.com.