formal crochet education in school

[LadyBeBop]

I was in a college prep track throughout high school, so there wasn't time for me to take Home Ec.

 

However, I did learn to crochet in a school-like environment; Ursuline School in Brown County, Ohio. For nine months out of the year, it was a boarding school (no, I didn't go to school there). But for the summer months, it was a summer camp. I attended summer camp for three years, and that's where I learned to crochet.

[ldyer1]

In my English school I was taking textiles (after the cooking teacher refuse to have me in class, just because of a few small instances in the younger years such as the smell of eggs making me vomit incident, the scones that couldn't be cut, the disasters I cooked and made her try and the teeny tiny fire that shut down the wing for a week). The class was mostly sewing machine based, clothing and a little bit of quilting, which I wasn't really interested in at the time as I already knew how to do it. I brought in my latch hook kit and she challenged me to do it from the pattern next time, and I looked at her and said "um....I did". After I came to the US I didn't learn anything domestic because I was on the college track. As if only dumb people need to cook and clean? I do it everyday, but I don't do advanced calculus!!!!

I teach girls at my program who want to learn all sorts of life skills, and for crochet I have about 50% learning right now. I am an occupational therapist so a big part of my work is what we call instrumental activities of daily living, such as money management, cooking, shopping, cleaning, etc. But I also use a lot of craft activities for alternatives to unhealthy activities, and the girls LOVE it. It balances out nicely because my assistant is into sports so they get the best of both worlds.

[lhasaapsolady]

We had a homeec teacher that taught crocheting in activity period. I already knew how to crochet, but took it anyway. I was able to help some of the other girls who were just learning.

[LeahB]

I didn't learn crocheting or knitting in home ec. The class was required of everyone, boys and girls in my middle school, but they had us splitting our time between two of sewing, cooking and (I think) child development. (As you might guess, when they sent around the sign up sheets on the first day to pick your preferred two out of the three, NO ONE wanted child development). Anyhow, like many others here, I had already learned much more about cooking and sewing from my mother and father than they taught in home ec, so I didn't really find it useful.

 

I did have some more formal instruction in knitting as a child, however. One of my Girl Scout leaders was a knitter, and when I was in elementary school, I can remember her teaching our troop how to knit over the course of several meetings. I didn't actually keep knitting because at that point I was too into embroidery, but for a short period of time, I did know how to knit!

[Sylviaf]

I never took a home ec class until college, when I took one for fun. Listening to my friends in high school, I would never have done any sewing or other needle work if I'd taken a class. They seemed to spend more of their time ripping seams than creating anything. My daughter took a sewing cass in school a few years ago and it was much more relaxed and enjoyable for her.

[hybridhooker]

We never had a home-ec department in high school or middle. We did have fashion merchandising and design, but no sewing or needlework was ever taught.

[hooked2]

I took Home EC in junior high and we learned to cook, bake, sew, clean (as if my Mom didn't already have me "enrolled" in that class - !). But no crochet or k--t - formal or informal! I majored in Art in HS and did oil painting, pastels, printmaking, etc., but still no crochet or k--t.

[LegalWoman17]

I never took a formal class to learn crocheting. One day in my junior year of high school, my best friend brought in some crocheting. I was fascinated and asked her to teach me. She taught me how to do a single crochet and a double crochet. I taught myself to read patterns. And I've been "hooking" ever since, 34 years now.

[catlyn]

My home-ec classes only taught me sewing and cooking.

I taught myself to crochet when in my early 20's,

because I wanted a craft to do. Learned out of an instruction book.

I have since then helped one other person learn to crochet.

She's better than me now.

[Maggie1956TN]

I Was Taught In Home Economics In High School How To Cook, Half-way Sew, What They Considered Child Care, Laundry Care But Never What Should Be Taught. I Think All Home Economics Classes Should Teach Beginners Crochet, Knitting, Sewing, And Cooking.

[cgd]

Like others, our home ec only had cooking and sewing. Crochet was entirely extracurricular!

[kiwikitti]

When I took home ec with the required course for the school (both boys and girls) we really learned nothing. Maybe a bit of cooking which I already knew how to do so it was really just a fun blow off 6 weeks. My teacher was more interested in letting us know how men ruined her life really. At least that's most of what I remember. Oh yeah, this course also included a shop type class for another 6 weeks where we learned CAD drawing, basic carpentry (let's just say my skills at that are very very much less than stellar) and how a car worked. I believe the other 4 for that course were Drivers Ed, Health, something else and Life Lessons. That taught us how to balance a check book and other skills and also how to plan a wedding.

 

Then, when I took actual home ec, all we learned was cooking again. That teacher (this was before the required one for school) just goofed off with the other high schoolers in my class and flirted with the couple of guys. She was just far too young to teach a high school class. But even still, all we did was cooking. Which honestly made me a bit disappointed since the previous home ec classes with the last teacher included sewing which I despretly wanted to know since my own little skills were and still kind of are very very bad.

 

I wish we learned how to crochet or knit or sew or really anything. That class was absolutly worthless because of the teachers they had for it in my high school. I knew more cooking from just teaching myself at home and basically used it as a blow off class since it was hard to respect either of the teachers as well teachers. Although I am happy I was able to take it even though I was on the college track with everything else.

[boksie]

My mil was taught crocheting and knitting in school in Germany. Unfortunately she has given it up and has no desire to pick up the hooks or needles again.

[peppermintpatti]

Hello Everyone,

 

Nothing but sewing and cooking in Home Ec. But my DSIL who came to America when she was 12 was taught how to knit in school in the Netherlands.

[trin]

In Jr. High and High School we had Home Ec. with cooking and sewing, but nothing like crochet or knitting. Just a little basic embroidery. This was in the 70s

 

As an art student in a fiber arts class, we covered all sorts of things, and crochet because some of us knew how and could teach the others.

 

I learned crochet as a child from my grandma, and knitting as an adult from a friend, and a kit.

 

These days, we're lucky to see that the kids get some kind of arts and music as well as "the basics"... they aren't going to get fiber arts or many crafts unless they are in a Waldorf or other specialty type school.

[~Kel~]

The only FACS (Family and Consumer Sciences/ in other words Home Ec) classes I took were Child Dev and Adv Child Dev bc I knew I was going to be an Early childhood ed major in college.

 

My sister was required to do the rotation in 7th grade through all practical and fine arts classes. After that they could pick. We had classes dedicated to sewing, cooking (and diff levels of cooking at that).

 

We also had a class called Senior Survival that taught basic cooking, mending, checkbook balancing and budgeting, washing and drying of clothes. You know the skills everyone needs. I think they may have done some basic auto maintenance as well.

 

My grandma taught me to crochet.

[Tampa Doll]

I had Hom Ech:yuck in High School and alls we were taught was cooking and sewing:thumbdown as a minor.

Now my Mom who was in High School Home Ec was a major and she was taught, Cooking, sewing, knitting, crocheting, and how to take care of a home. Of course back then, women were not expected to go out to work.

Sometimes I wonder if they were smarter than our educators in this area.

[Lavelle26]

No crochet OR knitting in our home-ec. I didn't take it (took choir instead) but my sister took it and I don't think she even finished a sewing project. I couldn't really tell you what she DID learn. (this was a small private school though that took what they could get when it came to home-ec teachers. )

[butterflie]

I had 1 year of actual "Home Ec" with a teacher that taught my aunts and uncles and my dad. That was back in 97 and she retired that year. We learned SOME cooking from scratch (own doughnuts, how to prepare full meals etc, some money balancing) the year after that in 9th grade I learned how to read patterns from our next teacher (who had a heck of a time teaching me as I am a lefty and she couldn't figure out what I was doing even sitting across from me.)

 

That was one of the last years it was taught in my public school. I've heard that it's being phased out of nearly all others now, as well.