Young kids soak up new information like a sponge. That is why educating them is important from an early age. It’s also crucial to have your facts straight before telling them to children—some of them might never forget what they've learned from a Teacher. Whether it’s right or wrong.

The AskReddit community discussed statements by their elementary School teachers that couldn’t have been further from the truth. Their examples ranged from blindly denying scientific facts to cases of plain ignorance, all of which prove two things: a) some of the information you learn as a kid sticks for years to come, and b) certain people should be taught rather than teaching.

#1

I had a teacher try to tell the class that Saturn, Neptune, and Uranus were the only planets known to have rings. I raised my hand and added that Jupiter had rings too, but that they were so faint they were hard to see. She vehemently denied it. When I politely (yes, really) told her that I had just seen it in a book, she gave me detention for trying to correct her in front of the class.

The next day, before class began, she approached me with an encyclopedia opened to a page about Jupiter, and apologized. She told the class I was indeed right, and that it's important to listen and learn from people even when we think we are 100% right. One of the more wholesome moments I can remember from school in my youth.

#2

That if I didn’t learn my times tables I’d wind up a broke garbage man, never learned then but I’m a garbage man who made 6 figures last year

Image credits: Additional_Swan_6531

#3

6th Grade

Me: But what happens when you subtract a negative number *from* a negative number

Teacher: You...can't do that

Image credits: I_Code_Stoned

#4

That I could avoid a nuclear blast by hiding beneath my school desk.

Silly woman. I saw a movie about this, and now I know to climb into a refrigerator instead.

Image credits: pullin2

#5

Sex ed teacher in grade 7 told me that the white stuff that collects in my underwear is semen. I’m a girl.

I learned way later that it’s actually discharge and EVERY vagina does this.

Image credits: oblatespheroids_

#6

That I won’t always have a calculator in my pocket. F****n liar.

Image credits: CriticallyThougt

#7

Never forget it. In 4th grade we were learning about bats. And the teacher asked the class to name as many different types of bats as we could. I raised my hand and said "Vampire Bats," and he said name only real ones please.

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire_bat](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vampire_bat)

They are real, and I knew it. But he made me feel like an a*s.

Image credits: Yetizod

#8

A student in my class asked why we call it the 20th century when the year was 19xx. The teacher explained that most likely that a long time ago probably in the dark ages they made a mistake in printing a calendar, but by the time it was noticed all the calendars had been made and sent out, so they just left it that way.

I heard her say this and knew it was all kinds of bull s**t, but I said nothing because I was a shy 4th grader and she was a hostile nun.

Image credits: DVWhat

#9

I got sent to the principal's office for using the word "plethora." The teacher thought it was a swear word. So did the principal.

EDIT: For those asking about a dictionary, yes, they looked it up. And there is some obscure, arcane definition that means a swelling of a body part. This, of course, is the only definition my teacher knew, not the extremely common one.

Image credits: DenL4242

#10

That I couldn't have blue eyes if my mom had brown eyes. Thus began a life long obsession with genetics so I could prove her an absolute f*****g fool. Bless my mom's single recessive gene she passed to me. I missed the blonde but I'll take the blue eyes.

Image credits: PeppermintNya

#11

My name's pronunciation. 1st grade 1st day of the year we all told our names, introductions etc. My name is from a SEA country and not even that difficult to say just read differently than its spelled, its even monosyllable. My teacher screeched at me and told me it'll be pronounced the way its phonetically spelled in English which included swapping two middle letters for some reason. The other students went along with it and so did I. Even to this day I still introduce myself by that pronunciation except to people of my own race.

In university I started getting people that wanted to pronounce it correctly which was incredibly kind and they sort of pointed out how messed up it was for that teacher to decide that for me.

#12

That there was no such thing as a black flower. She put a big X through my painting.

Image credits: Splattacus

#13

That Lincoln was the first American president. I told her she was wrong, it was Washington, and she snapped, saying ‘well why do you know so much about American politics it is pathetic.’ And all the other kids in my class started making fun of me for being stupid.

Reasons why I hate rural Canada.

Image credits: ProfessorPie1888

#14

"You shouldn't write 'Xmas' instead of 'Christmas' because you're X-ing out Christ."

The X is really the Greek letter Chi, which is the first letter in the Greek word for Christ.

#15

Science teacher in 4th grade told us it takes food 45 minutes to get to your stomach after swallowing. Spent an entire class period on it.

He handed us each a piece of cereal to eat at the beginning of class. Halfway through (some 20 minutes later), we had to point to where it likely was in our system. The correct answer, according to him, was somewhere right above our collarbone.

Years later, a bite of too-hot oatmeal told me he was an idiot in all of about four seconds.

#16

That in a court of law we are guilty until proven innocent. She confidently told us that multiple times, pretty sure she got it backwards

Image credits: kainerobins

#17

That the moon emits light, just like the sun. As a nerdy kid interested in space I told her that it’s actually reflecting the light of the sun, but she did not believe me.

Image credits: mandys14

#18

Before the blood touches oxygen, it is blue

Image credits: kbronzov

#19

"The higher you go up on a mountain the hotter it gets because you're getting closer to the sun" - my 5th grade teacher

Image credits: Major-Panda-1775

#20

People are going to offer you drugs disguised as candy at the park.. Just say no!

20 years later and I still haven’t been offered drugs at the park.

Image credits: Curiously-curious928

#21

I remember an elementary school teacher warning us to not accept apples on Halloween, cuz some people put razorblades in them. I mean, wouldnt you see the big fat cut on the apple?

Image credits: uncultured_swine2099

#22

I had a primary school teacher ask the class how many hours were in a day. I proudly put up my hand and said '24'. She said no. So someone else said 12. She said no.

Her answer was 8. There are 8 hours in a say. I still don't know whether she was trying to ask about a work/school day, but asking 8 yr olds doesn't really clarify that, especially when she said in a day.

Image credits: moisiebug

#23

That when you get to middle school and high school, the teachers won’t constantly remind you of assignments that are approaching their due dates, or hunt you down for missing assignments

Image credits: No_Skylark

#24

Never start a sentence with “because.”

Image credits: faith00019

#25

Not a teacher but the principal. When I reported one of the school bullies for physically attacking me (plenty of obvious proof), he put the blame on ME, & told me to "grow up". Spineless worm!

#26

That I will I will never amount to anything

Image credits: Fast-Volume-5463

#27

My mom told her 1st grade teacher her favorite color was magenta. Her teacher punished her for not picking a real color, and for arguing with her about it. My great-grandma, a painter, sent my mom to school the next day with a tube of magenta paint! Not long after this my mom skipped to the second grade?

#28

Not many people know this but the USA bombed Pearl Harbour.

We’re Canadian, but still, an adult should know better.

#29

I live in Germany and my teacher told us poor 3rd graders who knew little to no english in Sex Ed that "Sex" by definition means abusing someone.

I think about that a lot and I still have no idea why she would tell us that.

#30

1st grade math

Teacher: what's 2-1

Class: 1

Teacher: What about 1-2

Class: confused

Teacher: See, you can't subtract a smaller number from a bugger number

Me, an intellectual: Hey, wait a minute, that's negative 1

Teacher: Shush, those don't exist til third grade

#31

I had a religion teacher tell us that humans evolved simultaneously across the world at the same time. This was proof of a "miracle." I insisted we all came from Africa and then spread out.

Image credits: -BentoOreos-

#32

I teach high school. I had a student recently tell me that she was nervous that all the detentions she got at her old school because of being late to school would remain on her record. She was so relieved when I told her that they wouldn't.

#33

I was told in no uncertain terms that the match in shape between Africa and South America was coincidental.


*edit* That is to say: The match between the Western coastline of Africa and the Eastern coastline of South America.

Image credits: RhoOfFeh

#34

The sun was on fire ?‍♀️ wasn't til last year that my boyfriend reminded me that fire needs oxygen and the sun is a nuclear fusion. Los Angeles Public School system guys.

Image credits: DirectTea3277

#35

The tongue has different areas of taste

#36

"You'll never be successful at anything you do."

Adjusted for inflation, I probably make 3 times her salary.

F**k you Mrs G.

#37

I’ll never forget my year 2 teacher telling the class that “crayon” is the only word with the letter y in the middle. Even as a child, I knew that was utter bollocks lol

Image credits: t0b9

#38

middle school not elementary, but my sixth grade _science teacher_ told the class that sound travels faster than light because “if a plane is flying overhead, you hear it before you see it!”

Image credits: gain_glowsack_sun

#39

That teaching multiplication tables as fast as possible is the best way to do it. No. Speeding through teaching each set (like blowing through a set a week) and having timed tests set me up for complete failure. The timed tests made me so anxious I couldn't think straight enough to correctly answer the ones I actually had the chance to try and answer. Then of course all the ones left undone were counted against you. I don't think I ever managed to fill one of those things completely out before the timer went off. The saddest part is even though I was visibly struggling and failing the subject the teacher never seemed to see that as a red flag and attempt to help me. And math builds on itself so after the multiplication tables everything else I ever had to learn was way harder than it needed to be. If more time was taken to teach each set, ending with a normal non-timed test, I would probably know my multiplication tables today. But I don't. I was also told I'd never graduate without knowing my multiplication tables, that was also a lie

#40

Light cannot bend, at all. She was adamant about that

#41

In Junior High I had a social studies teacher that told the story of her friend who got a raise and ended up taking home less money because of the taxes... no wonder that myth is so prevalent in my province.

#42

I had a teacher try telling me you sweat urine and that's why you smell when you sweat.

Naturally as a young gullible I believed it because your teacher is supposed to be right, and went home telling my parents that who then told me the truth.

#43

Christopher Columbus proved the Earth was round.

Image credits: Snrub1

#44

I went to a catholic school and our mascot was the Pelicans. They told us they chose the Pelicans because when pelicans can't find enough food, the mother pelican will tear off pieces of her own flesh to feed her children. I learned as an adult that this is a complete myth.

#45

That "A lot" should be "Alot". I always got that red pen underline bringing them together and lost marks. I'll never let that go.

Image credits: remotegoodness

#46

"The ash at Pompeii sealed everything up so well that bakers' ovens were found containing bread that was still fresh enough to eat!"

Yeah, no. The very idea is completely preposterous.

#47

That George Washington Carver invented peanut butter.

Image credits: Mist2393

#48

That it's weird that you can write with both hands, pick one and stick with it. I could've had horrible chicken scratch handwriting with both hands instead of just one! For that I'll never forgive my kindergarten teacher.

#49

That you're supposed to start every word with a capital letter

#50

You will need to write in cursive once you get to middle school and beyond.

7th grade teachers explicitly prohibited kids turning essays in written in cursive. Don't think I ever saw it in high school, college, or throughout my career except from older people.

Image credits: LeeroyTC

#51

OP here with just a quick example:

I have this one really clear memory of a teacher at some point in my early school-years coming up with this really weird explanation of the Moon's existence. Someone asked her something about the Moon and where it was from or why it existed and she ended up saying that the Moon was actually part of the Earth that broke off (maybe true by some theories?), but she claimed that it happened in like the 70s lmao (definitely not true).

#52

That you can’t have thunder and lightening at the same time as a tornado. Got marks taken off a drawing for that.

#53

My third grade teacher said that if you're close to them clouds don't look like clouds, but like dew. I was really surprised the first time I was in an airplane and saw that clouds do indeed look like clouds.

#54

That in high-school, you not only need to memorize the answers to the questions, but you also have to memorize the questions as well. Apparently, according to my teacher, you were just handed a blank piece of paper ?

#55

The teacher when talking about being left handed and right handed, stated that if you write with your right hand that you kick with your right foot.

I had to correct her as I'm ambidextrous.

I can write with both hands and kick with both feet. I loved playing footy as a kid and would annoy people a lot. The issue is the rules in some sports as I would get told off when I would switch hands.

Table tennis/Ping pong, badminton was a no, but it was allowed in baseball and cricket. People weren't happy with me changing hands. Aren't you supposed to play to your advantage?

#56

That 9 9s is 83. Which she then went on to prove, to her own satisfaction, using a Snakes and Ladders board.

#57

That middle and high school teachers were super strict and wouldn't put up with any of our BS because they would put everything on our "permanent record."

#58

My middle and high school English teachers insisted that annotating novels was going to be a vital skill for college and life beyond that. I didn't have to annotate a single book since high school.

#59

That white fire was the hottest fire