Ornament Review: School Days - 2008 Hallmark Peanuts Ornament

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: You get to hear the teacher talk

Cons: A bit on the large side

The Bottom Line: 

Classroom scene is nice

The teacher talking is great

Whah whah whah whah whaha

Yes, Ma'am, I Do Like School Days.  But Only When We're Talking About This Ornament

I don't know about you, but I don't normally look back at my time in school with too much nostalgia.  I certainly don't miss tons of homework and tests.  That's why it's a bit of a surprise that I love Hallmark's School Days ornament as much as I do.

This ornament was part of their Peanuts line from 2008.  It features Linus and Sally in a classroom.  Sally is sitting at a desk front and center in the ornament.  She's holding a red math book with a couple of simple math problems in it.  Behind Sally and to her left is a blackboard with a couple of easy spelling words and simple math problems on it.  Linus is standing at the blackboard ready to solve the second math problem.  To the other side of the blackboard is a bookcase that even has an apple on top.

The ornament by itself looks nice.  The layout is a bit weird (a blackboard behind a student?) but it works for purposes of the ornament.

But what sold me on the ornament was the "magic" element.  That's Hallmark's term for any ornament that includes light or sound elements.  In this case, when you press a button on the front of the ornament, you get to hear the teacher talk.  Don't worry, it's the "Whah, whah, whah" sound we're already familiar with from the animated TV specials and movies.  You need three button batteries to hear the voice, and the first set are included with the ornament.  When I found out the ornament did this, I just had to have it.  And I've got to admit that this little bit pushes it over the top for me.

The ornament is a bit large in size and sits on a solid base that allows it to sit flat.  The hook for hanging the ornament is on a long arm sticking out of the top of the blackboard.  The hook itself is over Sally's head.  Even with that hook, it still tips back ever so slightly toward the blackboard and bookcase, but that tipping is only worth noting in passing.

I wouldn't have felt a need to track down a copy of this ornament if it weren't for the Magic feature, but having the teacher's voice makes School Days special for me.

Original Price: $18.50