Imagine you’re a 9 year old girl, living with your older brother and your dad. Mom has been gone since you were a year old, lost to the downward spiral of drugs and prostitution. Dad works long hours at a restaurant to put food on the table and pay the rent on your small apartment. You and your brother both have symptoms of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, although his symptoms are more severe than yours. This requires you to be the more responsible sibling, even though he’s 2 years older than you. Some days you crave the presence of a mother so deeply you carry a small photo album, with pictures of her, around with you all day, showing it to anyone who will take the time to look. Just the whisper of a maternal presence is such comfort to you.

This little girl is in my classroom and she has also secured a place deep in my heart.

Every Tuesday, at 3:30, she’s waiting in the library for Knitting Club to begin, with needles in her hand and a big smile on her face. She challenges herself to learn a new skill every week, diligently practicing her cast ons, and knit and purls, for the full hour.

Her personality quirks aren’t an issue within the knitting circle. Learning new skills and creating handknit treasures are the focus of this group. It’s a safe place, without the usual playground judgements. She basks in the attention of us 3 women who run the group and gains confidence with each project she completes. She learns to trust herself and her abilities as well as the students around her. Little by little she’s letting go of some of her paranoia that everyone is out to hurt her.

School knitting clubs accomplish far more than teaching the craft of knitting to the next generation, although that in itself is a very worthwhile endeavor. They foster acceptance and cooperation while creating a community of friends for all club members, even those who often find themselves on the outside of group activities.

Posted in classroom, knitting