W-a-a-a-a-y back to school

0 Comments | Gazette, The (Colorado Springs), Aug 17, 2004 | by Contributors: Deb Acord, Dave Philipps, Bill Reed, Bill Radford,

SHOW AND TELL: Dad's enormous cell phone, for emergencies only.

BEST FRIENDS: Anyone with a Furby, a Beanie Baby or a body piercing.

COMMUNICATIONS: The age of e-mail and chat rooms is ushered in.

PLAYGROUND TALK: Why MC Hammer is the best dancer ever; phrases such as "Talk to the hand," "As if" and "You go girl"; O.J. Simpson jokes; how Mom and Dad are preparing for disaster as the new millennium approaches.

the 2000s

THE TIMES: One term sums it up: Sept. 11, a cataclysmic event that altered the zeitgeist of the United States. Politics also have gotten testier than ever (hanging chads, anyone?). Yet, for schoolkids, it's basically life as usual -- friends, fashion, movies, love lives, homework and the latest gadgetry.

PROM SONGS: "Hey Ya" by Outkast, "Hey Mama" by Black Eyed Peas, "Yeah!" by Usher, with Lil Jon & Ludacris.

FASHION: The safe, rugged trends of Abercrombie & Fitch reign supreme, featuring jean-style short, short skirts and controversial "humor tees" that say things such as "Dudes prefer blondes." Fashion forecasters also say modesty is making a comeback, replacing the Britney Spears trollop look.

HAIR: For girls, the flawlessly "messy" ponytail becomes a staple hairstyle. For boys, the two-day mullet -- an interlude between shaggy and clean cuts -- is a safe rebellion method.

SCHOOL SUPPLIES: Graphing calculators, complete with Game Boy- like games and the ability to store equations, help kids goof off in class and cheat on tests. Students are starting to tote supplies in onestrap backpacks that sling diagonally across the front -- finally, a bag that fits the contours of the back.

TECHNOLOGY: The Gap sells patterned cell phone cases, and cell phone text messaging allows kids to pass notes without actually passing notes. Kids savvy enough to keep their techie toys out of the teacher's line of vision get to play with digital cameras, camera phones, iPods and Blackberries.

PLAYGROUND TALK: Kids exchange CDs to burn and recommend songs to download. The big movies: anything "Harry Potter," "Spider-Man" and "Shrek." MTV continues to be a must for any kid wanting to keep up with cool.

SIGNS OF THE TIMES: As the nation's Hispanic

population soars, English as a Second Language becomes an important program in U.S. schools.

ONCE HOMEWORK IS DONE, YOU: Ride around on razor scooters, some of them motorized, until it's time to watch reality TV: "Survivor," "Fear Factor," "The Bachelor" and "The Bachelorette," to name a few. And, for those who can't get enough nostalgia, there's VH-1's "I Love the '90s."