School in the 90s was analog with a little digital sprinkled on top. Teachers wrote on transparencies, a TV on a rolling cart meant the best day ever, and the computer lab was a place you visited once a week. Here is what going to school was like in the 90s, from the morning bell to signing yearbooks in June.
Quick answer
School in the 90s meant overhead projectors and chalkboards, the TV cart for video days, a weekly trip to the computer lab for educational games, Scantron tests with No. 2 pencils, the book fair, picture day backdrops, the card catalog in the library, folded notes, and a running list of banned fads like slap bracelets, pogs, virtual pets and Pokémon cards.
Key takeaways
- Classrooms ran on overheads, chalk and photocopies.
- The computer lab was a weekly event, not a daily tool.
- Every playground craze ended up banned.
- The year ended with signing yearbooks.
22 things everyone remembers about 90s school
| Memory | What it was |
|---|---|
| The overhead projector | Transparencies and a teacher with a wet-erase marker |
| The TV cart | A rolling cart with a TV and VCR meant a movie day |
| Computer lab day | Educational games and typing practice |
| Chalkboards and erasers | Clapping erasers outside was a reward |
| Scantron tests | Fill in the bubble completely with a No. 2 pencil |
| The book fair | Posters, gel pens and erasers that smelled like fruit |
| Picture day | Mottled or laser backdrops and a free comb |
| The card catalog | Drawers of index cards to find a book |
| Encyclopedias | Printed sets, then CD-ROMs |
| Passing notes | Folded into triangles or tight little squares |
| Trapper Keepers | Binders that closed with a satisfying rip |
| Gel pens | Writing on black paper |
| Banned fads | Slap bracelets, pogs, virtual pets, Pokémon cards |
| Gym class parachute | Everyone under the rainbow canopy |
| The fitness test | Sit-ups, the shuttle run and the mile |
| Show and tell | Mostly toys from the latest holiday |
| Reading programs | Earn rewards for every book you read |
| Class pets | A hamster that went home with someone each weekend |
| Fire drills | Lining up on the field in silence |
| Field day | Sack races and a ribbon for everyone |
| Cafeteria pizza day | Rectangle slices and chocolate milk |
| Signing yearbooks | K.I.T. and 2 good 2 be 4gotten |
In the classroom: overheads, chalk and the TV cart
The 90s classroom ran on the overhead projector. Teachers wrote on clear plastic transparencies and slid them across a glowing glass top, while someone always asked them to move it up. Chalkboards were still everywhere, and clapping the erasers outside counted as a privilege. Then there was the best sound in school: the rattle of the TV cart, a big TV and VCR strapped to a rolling stand, which meant a video instead of a lesson.
The computer lab
Computers were a destination, not a desk accessory. Once a week your class walked to the computer lab, where rows of beige Apple and later Windows machines ran educational games, typing tutors and drawing programs. Classics like The Oregon Trail and Number Munchers made learning feel like a reward, and saving work to a floppy disk was a big deal. By the late 90s some schools had internet access in the library, over a connection that took minutes to load a page. Our guide to the 90s internet covers what that was like.
Fun fact: Many 90s school libraries were still finding books with a card catalog: wooden drawers full of index cards sorted by author, title and subject.
Supplies, book fairs and the note-passing era
Back-to-school meant a new Trapper Keeper, gel pens, scented markers and a pencil case with too many compartments. The school book fair sold posters, novelty erasers and pens as well as books, and it was the most exciting week of the term. Between classes, handwritten notes were folded into triangles or tight squares and passed across the room. See every item in 90s school supplies.
Banned at school
- Slap bracelets (1990)
- Pogs (mid 90s)
- Virtual pets (1997)
- Pokémon cards (1999)
- Gel pens
- Trapper Keepers
TAGS
ON!
The banned list
Every 90s playground craze followed the same arc: everyone wants one, everyone brings one, then the principal bans it. Slap bracelets went first around 1990, then pogs in the mid 90s, virtual pets in 1997 and Pokémon cards in 1999. Find out why each one took over in 90s fads and the history of the Tamagotchi.
Gym class and field day
Gym meant dodgeball, scooter boards, square dancing units and the yearly fitness test: sit-ups, pull-ups, a shuttle run and the dreaded mile. The best day was parachute day, when the whole class lifted a giant rainbow canopy and ran underneath it. Field day closed out the year with sack races, tug of war and a ribbon for everyone.
Picture day and the yearbook
Picture day had its own rituals: the outfit you planned for a week, the free plastic comb and a portrait in front of a mottled blue backdrop or, if your school was daring, a background of neon lasers. At the end of the year, everyone passed around yearbooks to collect signatures like "K.I.T.", "Have a rad summer" and "2 good 2 be 4gotten".
Make your own: put yourself in a laser-backdrop school portrait with our free 90s yearbook photo maker, with your superlative, senior quote and friends' autographs included.
Bring 90s school back
90s day outfits
Flannel, overalls or a windbreaker.
Overhead art
Draw on transparencies for a retro board.
Note folding
Teach the triangle fold.
Book fair stall
Gel pens and scented erasers.
Yearbook pages
Make one for every student.
Retro trivia
Quiz the class on the 90s.
For outfit ideas see 90s day outfit ideas for school, and for decor try 90s classroom theme decorations. To test what everyone remembers, put the 90s trivia quiz on the classroom screen.
Conclusion
90s school was overheads and chalk dust, the TV cart and the computer lab, book fairs, banned toys and yearbook signatures. Planning a reunion? Start with our class of 1997 reunion ideas, and see what kids packed in a 90s lunch box.
Frequently asked questions
What was school like in the 90s?
In 90s schools, teachers used overhead projectors and chalkboards, a TV on a rolling cart meant a video day, kids visited the computer lab to play educational games, took Scantron tests, went to book fairs and passed handwritten notes.
What computer games did kids play at school in the 90s?
Educational games like The Oregon Trail, Number Munchers and typing tutors were common in 90s school computer labs, often on Apple or early Windows computers.
What toys were banned from schools in the 90s?
Slap bracelets, pogs, virtual pets like Tamagotchi and Pokémon cards were all banned in many US schools during the 90s.
What did 90s yearbook photos look like?
Many 90s school portraits used mottled blue or gray backdrops, and some studios offered colorful laser backgrounds. You can make your own with our 90s yearbook photo maker.
Did 90s schools have the internet?
Some did by the late 90s, usually in the library or computer lab over a slow connection, but most classroom work was still done on paper.