HOME AT SCHOOL

Homeroom is stereotypically a short period before classes start when announcements and stuff like that take place. It makes sense that the word is a combination of home and room, but if you think about it, the term is really weird. What does home have to do with anything? The history of homeroom in the context of American schools traces back to 1913, when it was stylized home-room. The name was meant to indicate that the period was a home away from home, a place at school where you could relax for a moment and plan for later. One interesting thing I've noticed about homerooms is that my high school holds it for five minutes after second period (weird, I know), which shows a shifting definition from a point in time before classes to any time at all. Homeroom lost the hyphen in the 1930s, peaked in usage in the 1940s, and has since remained relatively common in utilization.