16 Groovy 1970s Trends That Defined Growing Up in Iowa

If you grew up in 1970s Iowa, you probably remember a time when the strangest fads ruled the schoolyard.

From pet rocks to mood rings, these quirky trends made childhood feel totally different.

Let’s look back at the ones everyone forgot, but kids back then couldn’t get enough of.

Wearing Mood Rings to “Read” Emotions

Mood rings were the ultimate conversation starter for 1970s kids. They changed color depending on your body temperature, which people believed reflected your mood.

Whether it was excitement, nerves, or boredom, kids checked their rings constantly to see what “color” they were feeling. The science might have been shaky, but no one cared.

It wasn’t just a ring, it was a symbol of self-expression, mystery, and a little bit of magic. Everyone wanted to believe a tiny piece of jewelry could understand them.

For a while, they were everywhere: on fingers, in classrooms, and even sold from vending machines.

Collecting Wacky Packages Stickers

Before memes and parody Instagram accounts, there were Wacky Packages. These stickers poked fun at popular brands, turning them into hilarious, gross-out jokes.

Kids loved trading them at school and sticking them on notebooks, lockers, and lunchboxes. The grosser or funnier the pun, the better.

Even teachers couldn’t help but groan at the twisted versions of cereal boxes and cleaning products. That only made them more appealing.

For kids growing up in the 1970s, Wacky Packages were a creative way to rebel without actually getting in trouble.

Obsessing Over Pet Rocks

It sounds ridiculous now, but in the mid-1970s, kids were begging their parents to buy them a rock. Not a toy rock, a real one.

Pet Rocks came in little boxes with air holes and instructions for “training” them. The joke was the whole point.

What started as a novelty became a full-blown craze. Kids gave them names, drew faces on them, and even carried them around.

It was the perfect example of how the ’70s didn’t need high-tech toys to capture kids’ imaginations, just clever marketing and a sense of humor.

Making Everything Out of Shrinky Dinks

Shrinky Dinks were thin plastic sheets that kids could draw on, cut out, and bake in the oven. Watching them curl up and shrink down never got old.

They started out as a craft kit, but soon became a staple of rainy-day activities, birthday parties, and school art projects.

Kids loved making keychains, jewelry, and even little figurines out of their colorful creations. It felt like magic every time.

Plus, it was one of the few crafts where mistakes still looked cool after baking, so even younger kids could join the fun.

Owning a Giant Comb and Displaying It Proudly

Big, decorative combs weren’t just for brushing hair, they were an accessory all their own. Many kids in the ’70s carried them in their back pockets like a fashion statement.

Some combs were neon-colored, others glittery, and a few were the size of a small ruler. The bigger, the better.

They were mostly for show, though you’d see kids pull them out to slick back their hair during lunch or between classes.

It was a simple item that somehow became a badge of coolness, especially if it matched your mood ring or bell-bottoms.

Playing With Clackers Until They Were Banned

Clackers were two acrylic balls on a string that made a loud clack-clack sound when swung up and down. The goal was to keep the rhythm going without smacking your knuckles.

Kids brought them to school, played with them on sidewalks, and tried to outdo each other with tricks and speed.

The problem? They were loud and sometimes dangerous. The hard plastic could crack or fly apart mid-clack.

Eventually, many schools and parents banned them, but for a brief moment, clackers ruled recess.

Wearing Iron-On T-Shirts With Catchphrases

In the 1970s, nothing said “individuality” like a custom iron-on T-shirt. You could walk into a shop, pick a design, and have it pressed onto a tee in minutes.

Popular images included peace signs, cartoon characters, and bold slogans like “Keep on Truckin’.” The more outrageous, the better.

Kids wore their shirts proudly, showing off their personalities without saying a word. Some even collected different designs like trading cards.

For many, it was their first taste of personalized fashion, and it felt like freedom.

Decorating With Day-Glo Posters and Black Lights

No ’70s bedroom was complete without a glowing poster and a black light to make it pop. Psychedelic art, fantasy creatures, and rock bands lit up the walls like a dream.

Even kids who weren’t allowed to paint their rooms could make them feel like their own space with a few posters and some black-light bulbs.

Posters were often given as gifts or traded among friends, especially at school fairs and record stores.

They didn’t just decorate a room, they created an entire mood that felt exciting, edgy, and very grown-up.

Making Jewelry With Pop Beads

Pop beads were colorful plastic beads that snapped together to form necklaces, bracelets, or whatever your imagination could come up with.

Kids loved them because they didn’t need clasps or strings. You just pushed two ends together, and suddenly you had a new accessory.

Some kids mixed colors or created long chains to wrap around multiple times. Others traded their best-looking beads with friends.

It was part craft, part fashion, and completely hands-on fun for a generation of creative kids.

Collecting Banana Seat Bikes With Sissy Bars

In the 1970s, bikes weren’t just transportation. They were a kid’s pride and joy. And the flashier the design, the better.

Banana seats made bikes look cooler and feel more comfortable. The high-rise handlebars and sissy bars gave them a chopper-style edge.

Some kids added streamers to the handles or clackers to the wheels to make noise as they rode. It was all about customizing your ride.

If you had one of these, you weren’t just riding around. You were showing off your personality on wheels.

Dancing Along to Disco on TV Variety Shows

Disco wasn’t just for adults. Kids in the ’70s caught the craze too, thanks to TV shows that brought the dance floor to the living room.

Shows like “Soul Train” and “American Bandstand” introduced kids to new moves and music each week.

Plenty of kids practiced in front of the TV, trying to mimic the latest steps or perfect their spins. Some even hosted living room dance-offs with friends.

It didn’t matter if you were any good. The fun was in trying, laughing, and feeling part of something cool.

Writing in Scented Pens and Strawberry Erasers

School supplies in the 1970s weren’t just practical. They were fun, colorful, and in some cases, fragrant.

Scented markers and pens became wildly popular, especially in fruity flavors like grape and cherry. Kids would sniff them as they doodled during class.

Erasers came shaped like food or animals and sometimes smelled like bubble gum or strawberries. The cuter and sweeter-smelling, the better.

Kids used them, traded them, and sometimes just collected them because they looked cool lined up on a desk.

Trading and Collecting Sea-Monkeys

Sea-Monkeys were one of the strangest fads of the decade. The ads promised magical underwater creatures that could be trained and even played with.

What kids actually got were tiny brine shrimp that slowly came to life in a plastic tank. It didn’t matter that they weren’t as exciting as the cartoons made them seem.

Kids still loved checking on their Sea-Monkeys every day and showing them off to friends. It was a mix of science, surprise, and just enough weirdness to feel special.

Some kids even tried to give them names and build miniature homes for them inside the tank.

Learning Yo-Yo Tricks on the Playground

Yo-yos weren’t new in the 1970s, but they had a serious comeback thanks to school demonstrations and televised trick contests.

Kids practiced for hours trying to master classics like Walk the Dog or Around the World. Some schools even held mini-competitions.

Yo-yos came in all colors and materials, and a high-quality one felt like a real prize.

For many kids, learning a new trick meant earning instant playground respect.

Using Invisible Ink Pens to Write Secret Notes

Every kid loved the idea of passing secret messages, and invisible ink pens made that dream come true. The ink would vanish once dry and reappear under a special light or with a developer pen.

Kids used them to write notes to friends, pass classroom messages, or feel like a real spy.

Some sets came with puzzles, decoder wheels, or mini mystery games. It added an extra layer of fun to everyday writing.

Even when the message was something silly, the reveal always felt exciting.

Playing With Silly Putty in Strange Ways

Silly Putty had been around for years, but in the ’70s, it was everywhere. It came in those little red eggs and had endless uses.

Kids used it to lift comics off the newspaper, stretch it until it snapped, or bounce it across the room.