At what age did you learn ...

Jeryth

Queenie wrote:

... the following skills?

Sew on a button
Knit
Darn
Crochet
Cook
Clean
Patchwork
Basic budgeting (7yo)

What skills were you taught at a young age?
Which skills would you have liked to have learned, but were not taught (with hindsight)?
Which skills are you teaching *your* young 'uns?

I think my Nana taught me how to knit; she certainly taught me how to crochet, and I think I learned from her how to tat. Luckily, I'm a leftie, but I learned the RH way, so when my RH niece got her first knitting needles at Christmas, I was able to help her.

I don't know how to darn. I can't remember how old I was when I knew how to sew on a button.

I was never much good at kitchen skills - I think my mum and I clashed because we are alike, so cooking was left out of my education, but I started ironing about 7 years. When I learned about flow diagrams at junior school, and made a flow chart showing how to boil an egg, my family scoffed coz I couldn't actually do boiled eggs. Sometime later, maybe 10 years, I became responsible for the state of my room and my laundry, and my sister and I shared dusting and hoovering for the whole home, as well as washing up duties. Animal care was also included.

I have no idea about budgeting; but we were shown by example, I guess. If you ain't got the money, you save up for it.

I regret not knowing how to cook. I don't have any confidence unless I have a recipe to follow, and I just don't enjoy it.

I will not have children, but hope to help my niece and nephew in Real Life stuff, like sex education.

UPDATE: just remembered, this year I have made my first omelette and scrambled eggs.
Basic Training the in Army taught me how to iron properly, and various other stuff, including how to insert hairgrips with the Wrong hand.
My dad would not let me go out in my first car until I knew how to change the tyre. I did Basic car maintenance at nightschool.
My fella, being also Army trained, knows more than I do about sewing and darning. And lots of other stuff. Which is one reason why I love him.

Queenie

Bumping this up so our newbies can add to it

Queenie wrote:

What skills were you taught at a young age?
Which skills would you have liked to have learned, but were not taught (with hindsight)?
Which skills are you teaching *your* young 'uns?

[Deleted User]

I could cook a meal for 9 in a pressure cooker when I was 11
I knitted a dress at 14
I could use a sewing machine at 8

moggins

Oooh missed this one!

I never learned to do anything at all until I was 18 and had moved in with my first husband. Mum still cannot sew or knit or do crafts of any kind. She can't cook beyond basic meat and two veg. I got thrown out of needlework at school for breaking one of the machines and thrown out of HE for bribing other girls (with chocolate) to do my washing up.

I picked up everything I know from books or just trying although dad did teach me how to service and repair my own car but only because he never had a son. MIL taught me to knit when I was about 20. Cookery just came naturally to me when I got the chance to do it, Mum would never let me do anything at home because she said I would have enough to do when I had a family of my own, yeah, thanks Mum, I had twice as much to do because I had to struggle to learn it.

I will never do that to my kids. All bar the youngest, they know how to load and operate the washing machine, cook basic meals, wash up properly and how to use the hoover. DS is getting interested in rug making and sewing and DD loves to help me load the washing machine.

iwanttosave_2

Sew on a button- about 12
Knit- 9 or 10
Darn- can't
Crochet about 6 or 7 forgot how too now
Cook- did baking from about the age of 5 but proper cooking from about 13
Clean- 11
Patchwork- 14
Basic budgeting- 8ish, I used to save for extra riding lessons

Ticklemouse

I can't really remember specifics about the tasks I can do. A lot of it I just 'grew up with'

I do remember being taught to iron - I was 9 and by my early teens regularly did it all.

Cooking/baking - it's one of those 'ever since I was old enough I watched and helped'

Knitting - I made my first tank-top when I was 8

Sewing - not my strong point I did basic sewing at Grammar School and have done a bit of passable hemming etc. Did try to make a dress once but gave up. This year will be learning how to make decent curtains.

Patchwork - never really did it, didn't like it.

Crochet - today :j :j (G'ma showed me when I was bout 6 or 7 but basically forgot.) Had a proper lesson today.

General household chores and budgetting - it was all instilled in us as we grew up so I've never known any different.

Car maintenance - 1st hubby started me off with basics and I managed a fair bit on my own - but that was back in them thar dim and distant days of 'carburetors and sparkling plugs'

kiwichick

What agreat thread! Mine are as follows;

Sew on a button - 7 or 8
Knit - 8 or 9,not fantastic tho, I can never get the tension right.
Darn - 11 or 12
Crochet - havent learnt
Cook - Remeber making bread with mum before I started school so about 4. Cooking meals unsupervised for the family from 10.
Clean - Forever!
Patchwork - Havent learnt this either:(
Basic budgeting - 11, Mum went into hospital for 4 months andleft me with 2 signed cheque books full of cheques. I looked after the household budget as Dad was drunk/away most of the time.

I also learnt to sew using a machine at 11 but was doing bits by hand before then, would cut wood with an axe and light the fire at 11, mow the lawn using a petrol mower at 10, do the garden incl veg at around 8-LOVE THE GARDEN. Theres bound to be more but cant think right now.

I teach my kids cooking and tidying now. They are only 1,2&3 so a bit young to grasp most of this yet. I try to teach that we dont always have money for things and that "wants" arent "needs". I teach them how important manners are and love when people comment on that. They know to put rubbish in the bin and know which bits can be recycled. We make cards and pictures etc for birthday presentsfor the older members of the family. The rest will come with age.

tootles_2

My grand mother was a tailoress and I learnt to ew from her, she worked from home, so I sat at her side whilst she was machining sewing by hand, it was she who taught me to sew with between needles, I have never been able to sew with big needles. I learnt to knit at about 10, made a coat for my cousin when he was born. Learnt to cook at school, was not allowed in the kitchen at home. I was 3 when I was introduced to the cloths and polish for the table legs, which was my job every Saturday morning....... I was then gradually encouraged to do all the general dusting, I hated it, I had to empty the display cabinet and dust all the things that were in it......... horrid.......

Budgetting was drummed into me from an early age, as there were just the three of us in the house, mother went to work and grand mother looked after me. I must admit I slid off the waggon a bit when I got married.

My children, girls and boys were all taught to cook, wash iron and sew on buttons, they were more or less self sufficient by the time they were 14.

I can manage to do most things for myself, I wish I could ride a bike without falling off!!!!!

Dora_the_Explorer_5

Sew on a button 5 ish
Knit 4
Darn 7 or 8
Crochet 12 ish
Cook Still can't
Clean 11 for pocket money
Patchwork in my 20's when it came back into fashion
Basic budgeting 4 when I opened an account with Yorkshire Penny Bank

I'm glad my mum didn't teach me to cook, she was the world's worst. I attended convent school and cooking wasn't on the curriculum so I learned to cook when I left home at 18 by trial and error and looking things up in a cookery book, including how long to boil spuds

My nan was a court dressmaker so I think I picked up needlework, dressmaking and knitting by osmosis. I was certainly making my own clothes at the age of 12 and earning vast amounts of pocket money from 14 on making curtains for neighbours. I learned how to make lace at night school in my 20's - good way of spending 4 hours to produce an eighth of an inch of work :cheesy:

My mum, aunts and nan taught me to wallpaper when I was about 12 and I've done all my own decorating since I left home - couldn't trust anyone else to do it as well as me. I learned to tile, lay vinyl flooring and do simple electrics by from a good DIY book and a bit of trial and error (not the electrics :eek: )

Budgetting was really easy - I had to spread my pocket money around between my YPB savings account, weekly donation to the local missionaries and what was left over went on whatever I wanted, and when I grew up I didn't earn too much and quickly understood my wages had to cover everything - there was no such thing as a money tree. Also learned to manage money by watching neighbours having new three piece suites delivered and the hire purchase company snatching them back a bit later on because they had missed their payments.

My OH taught me to 'clean as you go' - quite a good lesson learn.

I taught my neices knitting and sewing when they were off school with measles, chicken pox and colds and was very happy for them to faff around in my kitchen making those rice krispy chocolate things, beans on toast, sweeties and anything else they fancied and I taught my 6 year old nephew to fish using a length of wood from a bush beside the river and a piece of string, we didn't catch any fish but he caught the fishing bug and still goes fishing 30 years later.

Rikki

Sew on a button Aged 10 school. We made felt dolls with button eyes.
Knit Aged 10 with Mum. Knitting squares for Oxfam.
Darn Aged 10 with Gran. Helping darn my grandads socks
Crochet Aged 10 with Gran. Making large crocheted blankets.
Cook Aged 11. Started at School and then helped out at home.
Clean Always helped from and early age. A litttle dusting and hovering etc
Patchwork Aged 11 school. [Home economices]
Basic budgeting At 13 I became responsible for buying my own things with pocket money earn't from doing chores.

Somethings you can remember so well. Probably beacause of the people who taught you and what they meant to you.