It's getting tough out there. Feeling the pinch?

Floss

There does need to be a return to proper domestic science, compulsory for all in all schools, with a focus on planning, shopping for & cooking nutritional & good value meals.

MsPennyMinder

I suspect I am closer to being in school that some people here are and I do agree life administration is something that should be taught in schools and isnt. Heck  I wanted to know that at 18, since learning to budget was just doing the opposite of what my parents had done growning up and seeing what happened. 

Tbf, though, I often found a lot of things learned out of context eg learning to "cook" by being handed the ingredients and half talked through cooking with no actual understanding being given as to why- was pretty useless anyway. I never remembered anything later on. 

I've learned more from asides in Jack Monroe's cookbooks than in school.

euronorris

Floss said:

There does need to be a return to proper domestic science, compulsory for all in all schools, with a focus on planning, shopping for & cooking nutritional & good value meals.

Agree. Many are not fortunate enough to have parents who are willing and/or able to teach them these things. So such skills would be really beneficial. It could help to break the cycle and ensure that they can help to teach their own children such skills in the future.

poppy811

completely agree with the above.  I was lucky to be taught shopping skills at home and at school.  Also I wonder how well my mothers attitude of eat it or go without would go down with todays children.

Wednesday2000

My Home Economics class (as it was called back then) at school was pretty dire. I remember that my teacher used to say that we should buy things on "hire purchase" so paying for goods in installments rather than buying it at full price. No idea what that was about or why that would have been helpful at all!

leftatthetrafficlights

Floss said:

There does need to be a return to proper domestic science, compulsory for all in all schools, with a focus on planning, shopping for & cooking nutritional & good value meals.

Although I understand the sentiment of learning this stuff at school, personally I think it would be a waste of time - unless someone has a real interest in the subject, most people only genuinely take in information like this when it becomes relevant to them. As a child who's parents/guardians do all of the shopping, budgeting and cooking they are unlikely to remember any of it by the time it is needed. I work with teenagers building independence skills - it's only when the need for them becomes immediate that they start to show any interest! 

I know that when I did home economics at school, I learned nothing- and we cooked things that we would never eat at home anyway! Nutritional information changes regularly (i.e. butter is bad for you/good for you etc) depending on what the latest funded 'research' says too - so other than imprinting the idea of a varied diet, I don't see the point in it. 

IMO, the better way to do it (other than parents/guardians who have a good understanding of it teaching their kids before they leave home and giving ongoing support) would be funded adult education including cooking, budgeting, debt advice.  It could be offered in the community; to FTB's through their mortgage provider; social housing tenants through the local councils/HA's; private tenants through a landlord scheme. All of these organisations/people have a vested interest in their clients being financially stable and in a position to be healthy enough to maintain an income and it's more likely to be relevant at that time. 

Anyway, onto other stuff... I'm cleaning off my washing line tomorrow so that I can start using it again - I opened it yesterday and it's a spider nirvana in there!! 🤦‍♀️😂 I'll be very unpopular with them tomorrow but I have deliberately put off doing the laundry for the last two days so that I can use the line - weather is looking good for it so I hope that remains as I'm going to have to do the washing tomorrow regardless! 

I'm looking at changing/getting a new bank account too - I really want one where I can have separate named 'pots' - with my current bank I have lots of unnamed savings accounts so have to check my records to work out which one is which - first world problems I know, but it would be quicker and easier to keep track of if I had named sub- accounts - if anyone can recommend an account please advise! 

ladyholly

My cookery lessons were called home economics and also included cleaning, laundry etc. Whilst I agree with leftatthetrafficlight about how much is remebered even if one pupil learns something it is useful after all I and I am sure most if not all of you had to learn many things in school thatI can neither be remembered  or ever used . A subject called life skills which includes things like budgeting, cooking, how to access bank accounts, the best way to remove stains, how to sew a button on etc etc. Yes some of the learning would become redundant as times change but at least young people might be a little better prepared for life after education.

EssexHebridean

I cant count the number of people who have asked me how to make pastry for instance. Ok  not especially healthy but filling and a pie can be strtched a long way.

I’ll challenge this statement to a degree. Take a pie, filled with some form of protein plus a heap of veggies. A gravy based sauce rather than one with a creamy base, perhaps. Potentially that’s going to be a great balanced way of someone getting carbs, protein and fats, plus several of their 5 a day. Serve it with a couple of additional portions of veg alongside, and follow up with yogurt and fruit. There is literally nothing “unhealthy” about that meal. I understand that this wasn’t a specific intention but we really need to stop labelling and demonising foods as “healthy” in this way - it creates “food guilt” which piles on the pressure even more to those struggling the most, and also contributes hugely to eating disorders as well - and those are dangerously on the rise in the U.K. Trying to adjust to using “more nutritionally dense” or “less nutritionally dense” is a good neutral way of moving away from the harmful forms of labelling that are responsible for so much food shaming, and causing so much stress to people currently. 

ladyholly

EssexHebridean said:

I cant count the number of people who have asked me how to make pastry for instance. Ok  not especially healthy but filling and a pie can be strtched a long way.

I’ll challenge this statement to a degree. Take a pie, filled with some form of protein plus a heap of veggies. A gravy based sauce rather than one with a creamy base, perhaps. Potentially that’s going to be a great balanced way of someone getting carbs, protein and fats, plus several of their 5 a day. Serve it with a couple of additional portions of veg alongside, and follow up with yogurt and fruit. There is literally nothing “unhealthy” about that meal. I understand that this wasn’t a specific intention but we really need to stop labelling and demonising foods as “healthy” in this way - it creates “food guilt” which piles on the pressure even more to those struggling the most, and also contributes hugely to eating disorders as well - and those are dangerously on the rise in the U.K. Trying to adjust to using “more nutritionally dense” or “less nutritionally dense” is a good neutral way of moving away from the harmful forms of labelling that are responsible for so much food shaming, and causing so much stress to people currently. 

I was thinking that for me as somewhat overweight a meal that has a fair few calories in is not good for me because pastry does have a pretty high fat content especially types such a flaky.  Sorry I should not make assumptions that it is the same for everyone. You are right that used in the way you describe it is nutritionally balanced.

euronorris

Sadly, there are too many teenagers out there who would love to be taught some basic cooking skills simply because no one at home is doing any cooking, of any sort and they are left to fend for themselves. So I still think that classes for those skills aimed at teenagers would be beneficial. But I also love the idea of adults having such classes available to them too.