Usually, the source of Abbott’s generational divide is the ideological differences between the older teachers and the younger ones, but this episode turns the tables with Jacob being the old guy who doesn’t understand the latest craze. And I understand how that feels — I was born on the cusp of two generations: millennials and Gen Z. I’m not quite a full-blown ’90s baby, but I remember being in my first-grade classroom on September 11. I understand a lot of millennial references, but I’m still considered cool and trendy, never cheugy. However, I’m way too old for any of this to translate into clout to my 8-year-old nephew.
Jacob has to come to terms with this same revelation when his students are captivated by a show called The Silly Sock Show. It’s a show featuring a family of sock puppets who communicate through a made-up language consisting of only “mimimimi†sounds. Jacob doesn’t understand it, thinking it’s just a bunch of socks, but the students, and Mr. Johnson, who has survived every trend, love it.
At the same time The Silly Sock Show takes over Abbott Elementary, Jacob arranges for Mural Arts Philadelphia to come to Abbott and create a mural with his students that represents their legacy since it’s their last year. After careful deliberation, Jacob’s class decides to use The Silly Sock Show as the theme for the mural. Jacob is crushed to learn that his students want this show to be their legacy, especially after Janine mentions that she always thinks of the mural she helped make when she drives past her elementary school. Except Janine didn’t finish the story — she thinks about the mural because of how corny it was. Her class decided to paint SpongeBob with a cape and a durag.
Jacob doesn’t understand this, though. He’s one of those people who still hold the tastes of his youth in such high regard that he considers them way more dignified than what the young kids are doing. He mentions to Melissa that Ed, Edd, N Eddy was “elevated†with entire subreddits dedicated to the show’s deeper context. Melissa brings him back to earth, reminding him that the show was about three friends with a plank of wood that had a crudely painted face on it. She tells him that nostalgia will always be important. Jacob isn’t convinced; he’s worried that his students will make a mistake that they’ll look back on and regret. But Melissa explains that their job is to “respect their now while preparing them for their future.†So even though Jacob had his students brainstorm a new idea for the mural (he “guided†them to choose to paint a sycamore tree to represent different sides of Philadelphia coming together to form their community), he reverts back to the Silly Sock Show theme to honor his student’s current personalities. To make sure there’s a timeless element, they turn the mural into a mosaic, with each tile decorated by a student with an illustration of what they envision for the future. It’s so sweet and aligns perfectly with the Mural Arts Philadelphia representative’s mission of having the students be “drivers†of the art.
The entire episode brought me back to middle school. I’ve mentioned before that I went to a performing-arts school; it wasn’t quite a charter school, but you did have to be accepted to attend. This idea of cherry-picking “the best†students to go to a school is something that I lived and saw firsthand. My school was located in an area of Akron that many consider “the hood.†Although it was the neighborhood I grew up in, many of my peers were from entirely different areas of town with sprawling green lawns and pools in their backyards. Much like Addington, my school was in an area of need but actively turned away the students born and raised within walking distance because they didn’t meet a specific criteria. On top of that, the students who have parents with money can afford the dance lessons, instruments, art supplies, and whatever else gives their children an advantage.
Now that Kristin informed her sister about Abbott possibly being turned into a charter, Melissa teams up with Barbara and eventually Ava to stop this from happening. Melissa finds out that there is an online petition started by parents at Abbott to make the school a part of the Legendary Charter system. Melissa and Barbara are staunchly against the idea, noting that they don’t require all teachers to be certified and that the money from wealthy private donors with ulterior motives interferes with their teaching. Apparently they wouldn’t even be allowed to make their own lesson plans and would be required to stick to whatever script Legendary gives them. And most importantly, not every Abbott student would be able to attend. At first, Ava is ambivalent toward the idea; she’s not opposed to less work and more money flowing. But when a parent comes in to say her son was asked to leave Addington because of low test scores, Ava declares that if anyone is going to take advantage of the school system, it will be her, so she joins Melissa and Barbara in their fight.
Meanwhile, Janine is trying to clean up her messy dating life. I’ve been there too, girl. The aftermath of the teacher’s conference leads to awkwardness between Janine and Gregory. They both decide it’s necessary to tell Maurice what happened, and Janine decides she needs to break up with him because, obviously, something isn’t clicking between them if she kissed Gregory. All three of them go to Bone Town together (don’t worry, it’s a restaurant, and this is a family show) to break the news. Maurice is surprisingly unbothered because Janine and Gregory assure him that the kiss means nothing. But once Janine explains that she still wants to break up, he’s livid. Because who in their right mind would go on a date with the guy they’re seeing, bring the man they cheated with, say it meant nothing, then break up? But, as Erika said, Janine may be a dork, but she’s messy as hell. And we all love it.
Teacher’s Notes
• Sheryl Lee Ralph’s accent work while on the phone trying to get more intel about the petition was everything. Knowing she was partially raised in Jamaica made it even better; I know she had a lot of practice. Also, Barbara calling Rugrats “Rugvermin†sent me over the edge.
• The older kids get me every time. Clarence and Jacob’s other students ate this episode, and all these little actors have great futures ahead of them. Clarence wanting to be a teacher brought a tear to my eye.
• The way Gregory knocked on Janine’s door told us so much about the state of their relationship. It was so gentle and uncertain, things that don’t describe Gregory at all … except when he interacts with Janine in a vulnerable way. I love small details like that.
Finally, here are the funniest lines of the episode:
• One of Jacob’s students, after he’s told to imagine his kids now go to Abbott: “What has gone so wrong in my life that I have to send my kids to Abbott?â€
• Janine talking about breaking up with Maurice at Bone Town: “If I gotta do this, I might as well be full of meat and covered in sauce.â€
• Joshua, after Clarence says he wants to be a teacher: “So you’re trying to grow up to be broke?â€
• Melissa to Jacob: “You’re pretty dang defeatist for someone who votes third party.â€
• Ava, after Jacob decides to change the mural: “Well, if it isn’t the white man, making decisions for everybody.â€