Unless you are preparing to be a contestant on Jeopardy!, there are some things that you had to study in school that you will never encounter again post-graduation AKA Real Life.
1. Algebra, Geometry, Trigonometry, Calculus
Really? High school was difficult enough without having to suffer through 4 years of Math classes that fried my brain over and over.
The thing that gets my goat is that I have never had to figure out if a triangle was isosceles, scalene, or equilateral since early 1990. In fact, I had to Google those three types just to complete this post. And I have not picked up a protractor since that time either. Except to toss it out when I saw it in a pile of old stuff as I moved out of my parents’ house.
2. Dissecting a frog
OK, I cheated a little on this one.
I elected to take ISCS Science (Intermediate Science Curriculum Study) in Middle School instead of Life Science to make certain that I NEVER had to look at a dead frog split open on my desk. We did problem solving way-over-my-head-thank-God-I-had-a-smart-lab-partner lab experiments. Therefore, I did not have the autopsy experience. BUT…the ridiculousness still stands. Have you had to dissect a frog or any other animal since you were in school? I have not counted any medical researchers among the demographics for my readers, so I am going to go out on a limb here and say…NO, you didn’t.
3. Types of Dinosaurs
T-Rex, Triceratops, Brachi–what? Don’t get me started on the various arguments about whether or not dinosaurs actually existed.
Please explain to me why it is important that we know each one of these oversized creatures by name and origin. Oh, I know why! So I could explain it to my young son when he played with small, plastic likenesses of them–in PURPLE and ORANGE.
I could go on and on with this list, but I think I’ll stop here. For now. I see a Part Two in my blogging future.
See ya later,
Kimberly
Do you agree or disagree with my list?
What would you add to it?
17 thoughts on “Things You Learned in School But Never Used Again in Life–Ever!”
OMG – this is so true!!! I am, however, glad that learned how to cook, sew and type! #trafficjamweekend
Typing was one of THE best skills I learned in the 7th Grade. Old school manual typewriter with no letters or characters on it. Still serves me well to this day.
I like to think that somehwere in our educational journey that all of this “useless” knowledge is bestowed upon us to help us figure out what what we want to do in life without actually telling anyone what kind of a job they can get by pursing calculus or knowing the different species of dinos that coorespond to various bone fragments. I think that if they just told you in school “if you want to do this, then you must learn that.” and then, only then will the light bulb go off and then we’ll all understand why we’re learning the darn thing in the first place. Thanks for linking up this post with us at #OMHGWW.
Well said, Alice.
Totally agree!
I had to chuckle at this list, it is all so true though! We will never have to know how to dissect a frog… or deal with algebra again after school, unless you go into a profession that needs those skills. Fortunately, I don’t use either of those skills anymore! 😉 Sim x
Haha! I agree with the algebra and the frog. I have 9 grandsons and they all love dinos, so knowing the names of some popular dinosaurs makes me a cool Mawmaw! Great post!
I remember dissecting a frog and thinking, “But, why tho?” Lol.
Also, I still haven’t had to use the Pythagreom Thereom(sp?) that my algebra teacher insisted on.
#TrafficJamWeekend
I have yet to use the Pythagoreom Therom either! LOL Nor have I found a use for Pi and integers. Oh well… Thanks, Lana.
I like your list and I hated school. BUT in the big view it is good to have a bank of general knowledge. We may be amazed at how often we do draw on bits of knowledge that we hated learning back then. Then of course, we now have Mr. Google to ask.
Kathleen
Yes, Oh Mr. Google. Thanks, Kathleen.
Thank you for this, and how very true it is! I have often thought the same! Thank God I didn’t take calculus! Over from your Traffic Jam.
Trigonometry is as far as I got in high school math. Brutal!
I’m a dinosaur fan, but I agree that understanding concepts is more important than useless memorization. Remember spelling. Unfortunately still need to know this one. LOL. Looking forward to additions on your list.
Yes, spelling is key. My 9 year old thinks he doesn’t have to study his spelling words. Every now and then, one he doesn’t know creeps up on the test.
Ha! I remember dissecting a frog. That was pretty pointless for my administrative career. #TrafficJamWeekend
Exactly!