Jake in School

Jake was Henry (Pa) and Katie’s fourth child.

Brother Jake was sent to Hull, Iowa Christian Academy for fifth grade when he was age fourteen. He worked on Piet Van Driel’s farm for his room and board. He did satisfactory work at the school but he did not want to go away from home again the next fall.

When the time came, he stayed at home to work on the farm. The school board found out about it and ordered him back to the public school because he was not yet age sixteen.

Jake came back into the sixth grade because he had not yet taken the state exams for passing. It was evident that Jake knew much more than the other sixth graders. Sometimes to the embarrassment of the young, female, normal-school trained teacher, he knew answers when she did not. 

For a joke, Jake would take the screws out of his desk so it would fall backward whenever he wanted it to.

Finally the teacher said, “Jake if you fall backward again you are expelled.”

Immediately, Jake fell backward and ended his academic career.