Day 7: Buttons, Coffee Pots and Other Useful Things

   Looking back over my childhood, I really don't have much to complain about. Both my mother and father had jobs, we all lived together in a comfortably sized house with a pool and I was able to go to a private catholic school. However, even though I had a fairly normal childhood, my teachers and parents taught me skills that even the most self-sufficient student today seems to lack.
    From an early age I was taught how to cook, do my own laundry, sew a button and treat my belongings with respect. These life skills have served me well over the years and make me wonder why many schools no longer teach basic Home Economics. Home Economics is more than just learning how to bake a pie or what cleaner to use when you spill wine or have blood on a shirt (Tonic water, always tonic water). Teaching young adult how to take care of themselves when they are out on their own can only be beneficial or even life saving (Just take a look at how many electronics some people plug into power-strips).
      So as a teacher, I say we need to bring back life skills. That while our students are becoming more proficient in geography or algebra, they are missing out on the skills they will need to make it on their own. So if these skills are so necessary in order to survive why did we ever let them go? The answer I was given is shocking in many ways, "lack of student interest." If that is the case than why haven't we gotten rid of math or history? Why do programs like home economics, music and art get budget cuts, while other subjects equally lacking in interest go on? I for one am a firm believer that student interest isn't based on subject, but how that subject is taught. So while home economics might not sound exciting, I guarantee students won't leave disappointed if taught right.
      At the end of the day educators and parents all want the same thing... for their children to be able to make it in the real world. I may feel strongly about teaching my students about long dead authors, but teaching them how to read an instructional manual, how to balance a check book or even what laws govern our nation might just be a little more important. So while many schools chose not to teach their students these basic life skills, that doesn't mean they aren't important.

If you are interested in home economics listed below are a few blogs that touch upon many skills that this subject touches upon:

1. Home Ec 101:Want it to look like an adult lives here? 
2. The Modern Domestique 
3. Brain Food: Blogging Our Way Through Home Economics