Page 5 - Inspirations2

School Days & Ditto Sheets Most of the books were illustrated by Florence and
Remember those purple ink worksheets, hot and fresh Margaret Hoopes. Both series were widely used in the
off the Mimeograph machine? The waxy smell of United States and other English-speaking countries.
crayons and Murphy’s Oil soap? If you’re 50+ years of The books were often sold as a set that a classroom
age, these smells instantly puts you behind a school might use for a reading curriculum.
desk waiting for the 3 o’clock bell! Back to a time
when chalkboards were black and chalk sticks were The Alice and Jerry books were discontinued in the
white. late 1960s because they were outdated and phonics
were beginning to come into practice. Many
classroom teachers held onto these reader series,
giving their avid readers additional material to digest.

Do you remember Alice and Jerry books? Ask your
friends if they remember Alice and Jerry, Janet and
John, and the gang from Hastings Mills!

Enter the Alice and Jerry books. Page 4
Alice and Jerry was a basic reader educational series
published and used in classrooms from the
mid-1930s to the 1960s. The "Alice and Jerry" books
followed a sister and brother, as well as their dog Jip,
through a series of simple events in relatively plain
settings. The "Alice and Jerry" series followed
patterns similar to the “Dick and Jane” readers. The
sentences in the "Alice and Jerry" readers were short,
and used repeating words to build reader's strength
and familiarity.
The "Alice and Jerry" books were published by Row,
Peterson and Company, which later became part
of Harper Collins. Nearly all the books were written
by Mabel O'Donnell. O'Donnell was a teacher,
supervisor and curriculum coordinator for elementary
schools in Illinois' East Aurora Public School District
131.

Inspirations Magazine | Spring