For the past
couple of weeks, I’ve been sorting through various resources that mom had kept
through the years. These ranged from
school newsletters from her years of teaching, to
The stacks and
stacks of handicraft magazines, mainly from the 1970s and 1980s (with the odd
one that was older than that, and a few from the 1990s), included not only mom’s,
but stacks of Gramma’s magazines, and even some from a gal who used to live in
town years ago.
As I flipped
through the various magazines, I did a little trip down memory lane as I could
remember Gramma or Mom teaching some of the handicrafts to my sister and I, or
just making the crafts themselves to use as gifts or sell at bazaars. I also thought that people had a LOT more
time to do complicated/intricate crafts back then, than we do now!
What was most
striking to me though, was that so many of the crafts that were considered
appropriate for elementary school aged children back then, probably would NOT
be considered appropriate for any age except adults nowadays. How society has dumbed down children.
When Gramma and Mom
taught us a craft we were expected to be able to complete it - no matter how
complex or involved it may have been, or even how “dangerous” any equipment
needed was. We were taught the proper
way to use it, and then we made not one, not two, but usually dozens and dozens
of whatever the particular craft was.
Having been involved in Guiding for years, I know the main reason is safety, but making things simpler doesn't necessarily mean safer. Safety comes from teaching the proper way to do the task before they start.
Beth
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