"It's a shame that our schools find that computer work is more important than the skills we learned to survive back in the stone age! "

Being one of the "elderly": it is not a shame that they are learning computer skills. If kids are to function in the working world they do need to know how to use computers. They are a fact of life. The skills from the "stone age" will not suffice any more. Even designing and sewing for a living requires computer skills (ever watch Project Runway and the use of tablets to draw and design fabric?)

By the way, when I was in parochial high school there was no such thing as Home Ec and I have managed to survive these many, many years!

I am teaching my niece to sew and she likes it. I tried with my great-niece and she had no interest. Like any other hobby, it is not for everyone.


"It says we are getting old. When we were young, there were the same concerns from our elders about old cultural things we were not being exposed to, and when these kids are old they will voice similar concerns over the upcoming generation..."


Amen!

"We recently cleaned out my aunt's home and our 8-year-old DGD found a rotary phone. She had no idea what it was. It was hilarious."

Show them a record album - that really confuses them!

Thats a wonderful story, maybe they will become sewers someday...I remember teaching my gd's to sew on buttons they too were so excited, kept em busy for a couple hours...then I taught them to make simple quilt blocks, they loved it...now teenagers not interested, but they will come back someday to it....I hope...

It is sad. I would volunteer time to teach kids to quilt, but it would never be allowed in the schools here!!! Most of the public schools will not allow anything that will not help them to pass the TESTS. I have a friend who still teaches, and she is not even allowed to do an art project unless it is written into the reading or math curriuculum. No Child Left Behind has really changed the schools here, not always for the better.

My DGD was over with a friend. She loves to take fabric, drape it, and "dress up." The other little girl asked her what "those things" were. DGD explained that they were sewing, embroidery, serging, etc. machines. Her friend then asked her if Mimi had a sewing machine store. I didn't know whether to laugh or cry!

We have lost - or misplaced - many skills and much knowledge that previous generations had.

(Reading Jean M. Auel's books - Clan of the Cave Bear was the first in a series - really helped me appreciate how much we have lost in knowledge of things like herbal medicine and basic survival - and also inspired amazement at how new things are/were discovered)

Many of us are still 'behind' on the new things.

Most of us manage to somehow survive in the present.

A few years ago my BFF and I did a class at her daughters school on a quick little card holder with a button sewn on for life experience class. They sewed the card holder then turned it right side out pressed it and then had to thread a NEEDLE! and hand sew a button on. They were wowed with the project and we had 2 hand cranks and one mechanical and one computerized machine so they were able to see the progression of technology. The hand cranks were a smash hit since they only sewed as fast as they turned the crank.

I've been very disappointed because I tried to teach our kids how fun sewing is & not one of them ever developed a passion for it. They do other crafts & have many happy memories of our projects together, but my hope of having a fun sewing day with one of our girls has been dashed. At least one of them owns a sewing machine & even bought an older treadle besides, but doesn't sew much. :-(

I sewed my girls dressed when they were little and di some other sewing. My girls could care less about sewing or any crafts. Where did I go wrong????????? Now my only granddaughter (almost 8) loves crafts and if I lived close by I think she would pick up the sewing. (Australia is not close) I would love to buy a sewing machine for her in Australia and her mom would use it for repairing things but I am not sure she would use it for anything else. I wish my daughters were crafty so I could have some pals to share with that are related to me. SIGH. I think about my sister-in-law who has two daughters and they all quilt. What a joy that must be for her.

Barb

I just have to mention on this No Child Left BEhind. I am a retired Junior High teacher. Here we also had the No Child Left Behind syndrome and of course your state curriculum and standards to meet. Well I marched to a different drummer and di what i thought my students needed to learn. We did art projects and other fun stuff that all reinforced the skills they were to learn without too much pressure on my behalf. I felt that kids needed to learn but we can make it interesting along the way. I never taught to the tests. I figured that if I was doing my job and meeting the standards that all was all right. We made paper quilts.....I wasn't brave enough to bring in my expensive sewing machines and let 30 kids use them. It was enough having computers in the class room that i was always trouble shooting on. My kids tests scores were as high as everyone else and some even higher, so I figured that I was doing ok.

When I taught elementray school way back in time.....I did bring my machine in and we did make quilts..........almost every year that I was there.