Anonymous wrote: It is a huge liability for schools to have random children or adults on the premises

Yep. Most public schools are very strict about visitors. This might be something to try with a small private school instead. They would probably make the parents sign a bunch of waivers though.

Anonymous wrote:When I was in ES in the late 90s, it was not uncommon for kids who had relatives or friends visiting from out of town to bring their out of town visitor to school with them for a day (as long as the visitor was of a similar age as the student). For example, say 4th grader Larlo’s cousins were visiting from out of town. Larlo’s 5th grade cousin might attend school with Larlo for all or part of the day, either sitting with Larlo at his desk in the classroom or maybe at an extra desk or in an extra chair.

Two questions: Does this still happen? I can’t imagine this being allowed today for a number of reasons - security protocols, liability concerns, classrooms are already overcrowded and teachers overburdened without adding random visitors into the mix, etc.

Second, did anyone else experience this growing up? I’m just curious how common this was. While I wouldn’t be surprised if most schools never allowed these kinds of visitors in the classroom, I remember attending a full school day with my best friend, who had moved out of state, when I visited her in the fall of 2000. So it couldn’t have been just my school that did this.

In 1977 when I was in 7th grade, my best friend came back to visit - she'd moved away after 5th grade from our town. She came to spend the day with me in 7th grade just as you said: sat at my desk, ate lunch with me in cafeteria, etc. I guess the idea of me taking a day off school because my friend was visiting was never considered? I don't know, but it was fun!

In the 90s I went to high school for a day with my cousin in PA.

This was def a thing in the mid 2000s in FCPS. I went to private school and my sister went to public, I wanted to switch so I “shadowed” her for the day. I don’t even think I visited the front office for a pass - I just went with her to classes, we left for lunch - it was very lax. That same year me and two girlfriends flew across the country to visit a friend who’d moved to live with her dad. All three of us went to school with her for multiple days! Mostly just flirted with boys and walked around the halls lol no one batted an eye

Anonymous wrote:I remember this happening when I was in school. I remember rece t high sxhool graduates would come to school just to hang out.

Wouldn't happen today for all sorts of reasons.

I don't know that it wouldn't happen today. My son went to a K-8 and graduates would come back to the school during a break when they were in 9th grade.

How funny! This unlocked a memory of me doing this in high school in the late 80s. I went to boarding school but when I was home on break I went to school for the day once at the local public high school with my friend at her behest. No one blinked an eye - and I went to class and saw all my friends from my hometown there. Funnily enough I used to go to Hebrew school with her when I used to spend the night with her when we were younger. It was a different time!!

In the mid-1980s, I did this twice in California high schools.

I moved away from California after 6th grade. One year during high school we visited our old home town and I went with an old friend to the high school I would have attended.

A year or so later, on another trip to California during my East Coast school's spring break, I went to a different high school in another San Francisco suburb with a friend who had moved from my East Coast district to California. We had buddied up because we were both ex-Californians.

On both trips, I visited the full day of classes. I did check into the offices and had permission to be there. I think both high schools were open campus, meaning students had freedom to leave for lunch. They were also made up of many buildings that people walked between outside under carport-like structures. So they couldn't ever be as secured as a single building high school.

It was fun!

I don't remember any guests at my MCPS middle or high school elsewhere. With the exception of AFS international exchange students who were giving presentations at their own or nearby school districts. That was more like an assembly.

I'm in Canada but absolutely remember this. We asked ahead of time and my best friend's old best friend from another city came to some of my classes with me, and some of my bf's classes with her. We were in junior high. One of my teachers even gave us permission to leave school so I could go show her around a bit. Sounds surreal now, but absolutely happened. I remember a few other day visit kids here and there, but it was unnotably normal to have them.

Thanks for the memory OP, it does seem weird to imagine this happening now! Maybe because everything is done on chromebooks now and class seems much less interactive...

I remember this happening when I was in school. I remember rece t high sxhool graduates would come to school just to hang out.

Wouldn't happen today for all sorts of reasons.

When I was 14 we were visiting family friends in Germany and I went to school for the day with one of them. I think she was 15-16. This would have been mid 90s. I grew up in England. I remember thinking they were so cool not wearing a uniform and how their day started at like 7am and ended at 130/2pm and my school day was more like 9-3. That stuck with me for some reason.

I remember this in primary and high school, but only foreign visitors. My (American) son asked if he could go to his cousin’s school next time we visit (cousins are in Scotland).

This isn't a thing.

I just wanna be her

Yes OP, I did this in the 90s! I went for a day to my friend's HS in another state. I sat through all her classes. Super fun.

I feel like my older sister attended a high school class with me when she was in college bc she was visiting and liked the teacher. I remember a lot of recent alum loitering in the late 90s.

I don’t remember random kids visiting in elementary school, but seems plausible. Not happening today.