Passing on the Torch

BlogHer Prompt: Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Do you enjoy teaching others? Talk about a time you taught someone how to do something.

I do enjoy teaching others, especially teenagers. I think it is important to pass on the knowledge and skills we have to our young people, and prepare them for the world ahead.

I have taught all three of my kids to cook, do laundry, and do basic mending on their clothes. I wanted to make sure when they moved out on their own, that they would be able to care for themselves. I especially wanted to ensure my son was not going to be a burden to his potential girlfriends or wife: I think every man should know how to cook, clean and put his own buttons back on. He should not have to have his mother or woman do it for him.

One very enjoyable summer I worked in a craft store, and taught sewing classes specifically geared to children and young adults. It was a lot of fun teaching these budding crafters how to sew. I am concered that with budget cuts in school districts that soon we will see the loss of home economics programs. I see the cooking end staying, but easily see the sewing end being cut as non-necessary in today's world, where most people do not bother to mend clothing themselves. They just take it to a dry cleaner and pay someone, or toss it, if it was cheap enough. Sewing clothes for oneself is certainly a dying art.

One other enjoyable teaching experience I have had is working with the Royal Canadian Sea Cadets as as Civilian Instructor. I helped teach knots, sailing knowledge, and rifle parts. I really enjoyed the cadet movement, and highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a program for young people.

When I was working my last job, I did not get much opportunity to teach, as it was not in my job description, but I do find that teaching does help me to solidify what I know, as I have to be able to explain it. It is one thing to know how to do something. It is something else to explain your long-aquired knowledge and/or actions so someone else can do them. It is especially hard when it is something you do so easily that you hardly have to think about it anymore.

Now my teaching is pretty much limited to helping the twins learn about their envirnment. They are learning to talk, so it is a lot of repeating words to them. And constantly teaching them what they can and cannot do. Endlessly saying "no".  My biggest frustration is that with my problems reading, I cannot read even simple story books to them without getting dizzy. And they love books, and love to have the same story read to them over and over. I feel like I am missing out so much on this wonderful activity that they get to share with my husband and their mother. I do read occasionally to them, but after 1 book, or occasionally 2, I have to quit. Which upsets them greatly. I really wish the Drs could find a way to fix the reading issues: it is probably the one thing that frustrates me the most about my brain injury. And the one thing that they seem to feel is not worth addressing at this point in time.