• Home
  • About Rebecca
  • SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER
  • @RebeccaOver60 on YouTube
  • Media Kit
  • Contact Me

Baby Boomster

Active Women Over 50

Shop with me - My product recommendations

  • Recipes
  • Travel Planning for Seniors
  • Old Lady Product Reviews
  • Visit My Amazon Storefront
You are here: Home / Baby Boomers - Women Over 50 / Nostalgia / High School Classes That Made Baby Boomers Who We Are Today
Privacy Policy This post may contain Amazon and other affiliate links. If you click and purchase, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

High School Classes That Made Baby Boomers Who We Are Today

by Rebecca Forstadt-Olkowski 11 Comments

High school kids have been in the news and many are quite impressive as far as the differences they are making in the world. It made me reminisce about the high school classes we took in the 60’s and 70’s.

As much as younger generations like to blast Baby Boomers and call them selfish or narcissistic, we made a difference in the world as well. In the book, Pendulum, by Michael Drew and Roy H. Williams, the authors talk about the chaotic system and show us how society experiences a shift in consciousness in 40-year cycles. Watch Michael’s Ted Talk here.

Much has changed since when I graduated high school (Class of 1971), especially in technology. However, our high school classes may have given us an edge into the future. I thought it would be fun to look back at what we learned.

Baby Boomers | High School | Girl in Mini Skirt 1971
Truly “High” School Fashion in 1971

High School Classes we took growing up

Typing class

Typewriters are now antiques but most women in the ’60s and ’70s were expected to be secretaries if they didn’t end up as housewives. Typing class taught us to use a keyboard with 2 hands! While everyone else is pecking away with one tired finger, we can type text with machine-like precision. I only took a semester of typing, but I don’t have to look down at my keyboard to see what I punch in. Remember how white-out made you sort of high?

Home Economics (Home Ec)

I loved Home Ec and took sewing and cooking. Between that and my mom who was a dressmaker, I can hem a skirt, fix a button, or work with a pattern if I’m forced to. Sewing class gave me a better appreciation of how well-designed clothes are made and how to handle a sewing machine.  

Our cooking classes in Home Ec were all girls until my senior year. Then, the boys got to join in. We all loved it because we got to eat what we cooked at the end of class. That was before microwaves. The boys loved it too and guys who cook are sexy, at least to me, anyway.

High School Home Economics Class late 1960s
Home Ec class at CMHS – 1971

Math

When we took math classes it was before calculators unless you count the abacus. You had to actually learn to add and subtract. It wasn’t my favorite subject even though I got B’s. Unfortunately, I can’t remember any of it now, especially algebra and geometry because I never had a reason to use it.

We never learned how to do practical things like balance a checkbook. My Dad taught me that. Even today, there are a few high school classes that teach practical math.  Today, I use a computer program called Mint to keep track of my expenses.

My first job was as a cashier at A & W Root Beer. The cash register didn’t tell you how to make change like it does now. I couldn’t count on my fingers fast enough and ended up getting fired. My Dad was a genius at math but somehow it didn’t make it into my DNA.

English and Grammar

Reading some of my classmate’s Facebook posts, you’d think grammar was never taught in our school and it kind of wasn’t. Our school was conducting an experiment at the time I was there. It was called Flexible scheduling. We could choose our classes in blocks just like in college. I only took a semester of grammar because we had more exciting choices like “Writing for Fantasy and Science Fiction” “Beach Sports” and “Basket Weaving.”

Thank goodness I use Grammarly or my blog posts would be embarrassing.  Still, English and literature were some of my favorite high school classes.

Baby Boomers | High School | High School Teachers and Student 1971
The English teacher on the left married a girl in the class after me. But they had a happy and long marriage. That would have been considered a no-no today.

Handwriting

Whenever one of my kid’s Grandmothers wrote a note to them, I had to translate because they couldn’t read her cursive writing. Even today, their signatures are scribbles.

Agriculture

Our high school had a farm with animals and some kids belonged to the 4 H Club. The funny thing was the school was near a beach town in Southern California. I don’t think many of the students ever became farmers.

Journalism

When we were in high school the news was all about hippies, protests, and the War in Vietnam. Much of that was reflected in our school newspaper.

Baby Boomers | High School | School Newspaper 1970
CMHS Newspaper – 1970

The Library

Remember the Dewey decimal system? You had to open little drawers and plow through card files to find the book you were looking for. Then you checked them out from the school librarian so you could work on your report. You used those references to add footnotes with weird notations like [1] Ibid and Op.cit. I have no idea what they mean now and never used them again after college.

I’m so glad we can go now just Google it.

Baby Boomers | High School | High School Librarians 1971
CMHS Roundup Librarians 1971

Other Activities we took part in

Charm School

Charm School wasn’t offered in high school, but I took a class at our local Sears store. It was taught by a neighbor of ours who was a former model. We learned the importance of washing our faces every morning and night and I’ve always been diligent. She also taught us to hold onto the rail and gently glide down a staircase. After taking a tumble down some steps a while back, I hold on for dear life and, as we’re all much older, I suggest we all do the same.

Clubs

Our school had several clubs but the only one I was a member of was Drama Club. I won the Bank of America Award for Outstanding Student in Drama the year I graduated.

Baby Boomers | High School |
CMHS Drama Club 1971
Baby Boomers | High School | High School Theater rehearsal 1971
Me rehearsing a play in High School 1971
Drama Club – I’m on the far right next to that cute boy.

Most of the “popular” girls belonged to clubs like “Girl’s League.”  They did “do’s and don’t’s fashion shows, organized the Christmas formal, and held a slumber party in the gym for all the girls. Don’t they look cute? I wonder if their fashion choice was a do or a don’t?

Baby Boomers | High School | High School Girl's League 1971
CMHS Roundup Girl’s League 1971 – Love the outfits?

Those were the good old days. We celebrated our 50th high school reunion. It was hard to believe a half-century has gone by since we were in high school.

What high school classes helped you to become who you are today? Please leave a comment below.

Baby Boomers | High School | High School classes we took
Girls rule, boys drool! High School in 1971

Share this post:

Share on Facebook Share on Pinterest Share on LinkedIn

Filed Under: Nostalgia Tagged With: friends, nostalgia

Join my newsletter and receive new posts weekly

About Rebecca Forstadt-Olkowski

Rebecca Olkowski is a travel/lifestyle blogger and founder of BabyBoomster.com, for active older women over 50. She is a purveyor of all things fun, loves to venture out in the world, is a foodie, and lives in Los Angeles.

Comments

  1. Lois Alter Mark says

    March 17, 2018 at 11:11 am

    I love looking at all these amazing photos! They bring back so many similar memories for me. The world has changed so much over these years – and, like any middle aged woman, sometimes I wish we could go back to those days.

    Reply
    • Rebecca Forstadt-Olkowski says

      March 18, 2018 at 12:36 pm

      I totally relate. Sometimes, it would be nice to go back to those days, and knowing what I do now, I may have done some things differently. Or, maybe not. LOL

      Reply
  2. Alana says

    March 18, 2018 at 6:43 am

    I went to a specialized (needed to pass a very competitive exam to get in) high school in New York City so I didn’t have the typical high school experience. Everything was tied to math or science, even the “home ec” class that was called something like “The Chemistry of Cooking”. And guess what? I am not a real science person but that was my favorite class. (and if you saw how I use microwave meals and cake mixes, you would wonder about that.) Of all my classes, I used Typing the most – perhaps my career path would have been way different if I had not turned out to have an aptitude for it.

    Reply
    • Rebecca Forstadt-Olkowski says

      March 18, 2018 at 12:38 pm

      Sounds like you had an amazing experience in school. My aptitude test in high school showed a high level of mechanical reasoning that I never used until I started blogging. Turns out, I’m kind of a tech geek. Who knew?

      Reply
  3. Chris says

    March 18, 2018 at 11:57 am

    When I was in high school I had a drama class and for one thing we had to make puppets out of insulator foam or some spongey yellow stuff. I had never really sewed before but from watching it on tv and my mom making Halloween costumes, I did a pretty good job at sewing it. Later I found out my grandpa was a tailor in Poland. Back in grade school I was kind of the outcast kid. I wasn’t popular and was kinda odd and eccentric. in high school I got to reinvent myself and met my love interest who I’m still with who liked me for being nice. also in grade school I didn’t really have any friends. But in high school I met my D&D homie who later got sick of me. In fact, the only 2 people I’m still in contact with from high school are my Yugioh homie and y love interest. Others I see around at times but not often. Strange enough, I usually have dreams of being back in grade school

    Reply
    • Rebecca Forstadt-Olkowski says

      March 18, 2018 at 12:40 pm

      Interesting, Chris. I only have 1 friend I see every once in a while from high school. Even though I was in the same high school for all 4 years, we, and I moved a lot. Most of them I don’t relate to much except for a few I’ve reconnected with on Facebook.

      Reply
  4. Sue from Sizzling Towards 60 & Beyond says

    March 19, 2018 at 2:19 am

    Oh yes I took those subjects and don’t you love the ‘handwriting’ class. My handwriting was beautiful but so many years of typing and not writing by hand, I definitely would not get an ‘A’ these days.

    Reply
  5. Tom D. says

    September 28, 2020 at 6:58 am

    Funny, I’m a baby boomer too, but I graduated high school in 1981, ten years after you!

    Reply
    • Rebecca Forstadt-Olkowski says

      September 28, 2020 at 7:49 am

      I guess that makes me officially old. LOL

      Reply
  6. Bill Woolley says

    February 7, 2025 at 12:39 pm

    So interesting! I just came across this article because I write monthly emails to each of my three grandchildren to tell them about my experiences when I was their age. Today, I was writing to my ninth-grade grandson, telling him about classes I had in high school. (I, like you, graduated in 1971 and had no idea why I’d ever use algebra.) I know this blog is intended for “active women over 50,” but it was very helpful for me as I wrote. One subject I’d add, as a male, is wood shop. Anyway, I have always deeply regretted that my high school never offered any classes in psychology or sociology. Apparently, schools thought it was important to teach us how to dissect frogs, solve for ‘x’, make book shelves and bake cakes, but not how to understand ourselves and play a positive role in society. I sincerely hope that lack has been addressed by educators today!

    Reply
    • Rebecca Forstadt-Olkowski says

      February 7, 2025 at 3:39 pm

      Hi Bill, I love that you write monthly emails to your grandchildren talking about what it was like when you were young. I bet they just love to hear about it. We also had wood shop at our school but since I was a girl, I never took the class. I believe they offered it to girls after I left. But, you’re right. That was a great and practical class.

      Reply

Leave a comment and tell us what you think Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Welcome to Baby Boomster!

Rebecca Forstadt Olkowski - Digital Content Creator and Voice Over Actor

I’m Rebecca Olkowski and I created Baby Boomster for active older women over 50 who want to live life to the fullest without age as a boundary. How we react to aging is all about our attitude and I choose to react to it positively. I write about Fashion, Beauty, Travel, Entertainment, Wellness, Lifestyle and having FUN.

Read more about me here

  • Contact me at Rebecca@babyboomster.com
  • Media Kit
  • Writer’s Guidelines

Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn | Pinterest | Twitter | YouTube | Amazon Store

Please read my latest posts

  • The Best Resort Wear for Women Over 50 in 2025
  • Household Tools I Love to Use to Make Life Easier Over 50
  • My Late ADHD Diagnosis and the Journey to Self-Acceptance
  • Best of Baby Boomer Blogs: Wings of Hope
  • Women Over 50 Are Throwing the “Rules” Out the Window
  • The Real Secret to a Rich Retirement? Hint: It’s Not the Money
  • Air Travel Tips from the Flight Deck
  • The Best At-Home Beauty Devices for Older Women for 2025
  • Rocking the Best Jeans for Women Over 60 by Body Shape
  • To Rant or Not to Rant? That is the Question

Click Below for Popular Topics

aging author Baby Boomer blogs Baby Boomer Travel beauty Blogging Books business celebrities clothing disease prevention doctors Europe fashion over 50 Fitness over 50 fruit Health Benefits healthcare healthy eating holidays hotel International Cuisine interview longevity mental health older women pandemic product review recipe reduce stress reinvention restaurant retirement self care Self Improvement shopping skin care smart eating style over 50 Travel Over 50 vegan vegetables vegetarian women over 50 writers

Enjoy getting the news in your inbox with Morning Brew. It’s straight news with humor and puzzles.

Contact Info

  • About Baby Boomster
  • Send a message
  • Media Kit
  • Writer’s Guidelines

…………………………………………..

Rebecca Forstadt Olkowski
rebecca@babyboomster.com
Los Angeles,  CA 91001

Honors and Awards

Top 100 Baby Boomer blogs

Intellifluence Trusted Blogger

Search for a topic

Legal Stuff You Need to Know

  • Disclaimer
  • Disclosure
  • Please read my Privacy and Cookie Policy

Amazon Program Info

Rebecca Olkowski is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program, and the Amazon Influencer Program. She earns commissions from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Other affiliations are listed HERE.

INSTAGRAM | LINKEDIN |  PINTEREST |  THREADS |  YOUTUBE |  FACEBOOK |  AMAZON


BabyBoomster.com is a travel, fashion, beauty, wellness, and lifestyle blog for Baby Boomer women over 50. | Los Angeles, California

Copyright Ⓒ 2025  | BabyBoomster.com  |  All Rights Reserved

Privacy and Cookie Policy