I learned to sew when my Grandmother taught me to sew on her treadle. I was 7 and made a pair of polka-dot pj's. I now have that treadle. I knew how to sew and how to cook by the time I was in high school. No teacher for sewing, so a Biology teacher (who knew NOTHING about sewing) was roped into teaching our class. Thank goodness I had been sewing for years (4-H+Grandmother). Cooking was even more fun. Knowledgeable teacher but a bit quirky. My partner and I used the kitchen in the back corner. Because both of us had learned to cook years before (again, 4-H), we ended up with either half as much as everyone else if we prepared something neither of us liked (rice pudding), or twice as much if something we liked (chocolate chip cookies!). Our teacher never could figure out why we ended up with so much more or less than the others in the class.