Home economics classes , anyone remember?

[Nick12]

I remembered the home ec classes that school had the students take. Does anyone recall those classes and did it give you a start in understanding and learn how to cook and bake? I do not think it is offered in middle school anymore.

 

[Winemaker]

It is now a politically correct class called Family and Consumer Science. DW taught it for 35 years in 2 states and 7 schools.

 

[OneMarcilV]

Remember our school has Home Economic Classes.

Yes before all this crazy politically correct nonsense became in existence.

 

[omni550]

I remembered the home ec classes that school had the students take. Does anyone recall those classes and did it give you a start in understanding and learn how to cook and bake? I do not think it is offered in middle school anymore.

Nick,

When I was in junior high school, all the young ladies were required to take sewing and cooking classes. And all the young men had to take shop classes (woodworking and metal shop?, I think).

Cooking class covered random stove-top cooking (apple sauce is one thing I recall making) and baking (we made toast points and filled them with some creamy chicken and peas thing), menu planning, etc. Sewing involved making a skirt and an apron with the poorly-maintained sewing machines.

I can safely say I never made any recipe that we made in class. And the school sewing machine put me off sewing for years.

I'm a decent sewist now but it's no thanks to that class.

I would have much preferred taking the shop classes, but that was not an option back in the 'dark ages'.

omni

 

[Mmm Rrr]

My father learned the basics of cooking and sewing in a home ec class during the depression. He said all the boys signed up for it because it often included a meal!

 

[Sunset]

Nick,

When I was in junior high school, all the young ladies were required to take sewing and cooking classes. And all the young men had to take shop classes (woodworking and metal shop?, I think).

..

At our HS, there was no rule, but only 1 guy in the entire school took HomeEc.
Anybody looking for a brain rest could take a shops class. One fellow rested his brain too well and cut off his finger in my class

I don't remember any girls in our class

We all followed the unwritten social rules we thought existed.

I have a number of things from shop class I made and gave to my DM. I inherited them back.
We use the red oak coffee table I made, lately I've been thinking of making a brass plate to screw onto the bottom with my name/date so someone looking at it 100 yrs from now will know who made it.

 

[Closet_Gamer]

My daughters had to do a bit of this nonsense (not gender specific). They got nothing out of it.

However, one daughter's teacher -- when she was in the 5th grade -- took it upon himself to teach the kids a bit about money, debt, credit cards and interest rates. She's 21 now and still remembers what he taught.

I think a personal finance class would be hugely valuable. Perhaps one in late elementary and another in high school.

 

[Nick12]

My daughters had to do a bit of this nonsense (not gender specific). They got nothing out of it.

However, one daughter's teacher -- when she was in the 5th grade -- took it upon himself to teach the kids a bit about money, debt, credit cards and interest rates. She's 21 now and still remembers what he taught.

I think a personal finance class would be hugely valuable. Perhaps one in late elementary and another in high school.

Good point but businesses small and large want their consumers to be slaves to debt to fuel their industries. It seems to be working in their favor. Home ec in my opinion was not nonsense.

 

[Ronstar]

When I was in junior high school, all the young ladies were required to take sewing and cooking classes. And all the young men had to take shop classes (woodworking and metal shop?, I think

IIRC, I think that the young ladies in our high school were required to take Home Ec.

But I don't remember shop class being required for guys. Maybe it was for freshmen and sophomores. I took shop class 4 years and I remember the counselor trying to talk me out of it when I was a senior because I was on a college prep curriculum that didn't include shop class. So I took it in lieu of a study hall.

 

[Badger]

My father learned the basics of cooking and sewing in a home ec class during the depression. He said all the boys signed up for it because it often included a meal!

In my early years when a high school teacher I would forfeit my planning period to substitute for the Home Ec teacher when she was sick. I could raid their refrigerator and make lunch for myself as a cooking lesson for the class.



Cheers!

 

[ransil]

Anyone else have a shop teacher missing a digit? Ours did.

Mystery Science Theater on Home EC

https://youtu.be/ibUsglYe4r0

 

[thod]

In late 70’s, I had 6 weeks each of home ec, wood shop, metal shop, and a few others that I forgot in 7th grade. In 8th grade you picked 2 of them and spent half the year in each of the ones you picked.

Sometime in 10th grade we took a class that taught you some kind of life skills stuff. Simple typing, how to write checks, how to create a resume, etc.

 

[Venturer]

IIRC, I think that the young ladies in our high school were required to take Home Ec.

But I don't remember shop class being required for guys. Maybe it was for freshmen and sophomores. I took shop class 4 years and I remember the counselor trying to talk me out of it when I was a senior because I was on a college prep curriculum that didn't include shop class. So I took it in lieu of a study hall.

I remember that typing was also one of the classes that the young ladies were taking in my school. I took a shop class my senior year because I had enough credits to for graduation but it was before the time of early release. You had to go to a class for the cpmplete school day. The shop teacher called me aside on the 1st day and told me in no uncertain terms that if I caused him any trouble I would be gone in a heartbeat. I assured him that I just "want to serve my time and go to the Army"!! He let me stay in, at the end of the 1st month made me the "foreman" and I passed that class with an A+ & he didn't have any trouble from anyone in that class.

 

[Philliefan33]

Nick,

When I was in junior high school, all the young ladies were required to take sewing and cooking classes. And all the young men had to take shop classes (woodworking and metal shop?, I think).

Cooking class covered random stove-top cooking (apple sauce is one thing I recall making) and baking (we made toast points and filled them with some creamy chicken and peas thing), menu planning, etc. Sewing involved making a skirt and an apron with the poorly-maintained sewing machines.

I can safely say I never made any recipe that we made in class. And the school sewing machine put me off sewing for years.

I'm a decent sewist now but it's no thanks to that class.

I would have much preferred taking the shop classes, but that was not an option back in the 'dark ages'.

omni

Me too. I even went so far to ask to take shop instead of home ec. The principal told my mother that the school board would have to tell him to allow me to exchange home ec for shop class. Mom decided it wasn’t worth the energy to fight. (She may have secretly been reluctant to promote my tomboy tendencies).

Here we are forty years later. Baking and sewing are two of my hobbies, but that’s certainly not as a result of taking home economics.

When my daughters went through middle school, all students took shop class and all students took home ec. Progress!

 

[mitchjav]

In my school, in NYC, it was very traditional - girls did home ec, boys did shop.
I did metal shop, wood shop & ceramics. Made some nice amateur pieces - a candy dish, a wood relief piece for the wall, a vase. DM used it all around the house. That said, these classes never translated into skills around home repair or the home workshop. I can get by on some things, but mostly rely on the professionals.

 

[Jerry1]

I took all the shop classes but focused on auto shop. I think it was Jr. High, probably 8th grade when I took a Home Economics class that had sewing and cooking. I don’t remember much from it, but in total, I think the practical classes helped me over the years. Before I when to college, I used to work on my own cars, so auto shop helped for sure. It sure was nice though when I made enough money not to have to do all of my own car repair. Now I just do minor maintenance things like filters and wipers.

 

[Gumby]

My family moved to Missouri between my junior and senior year of high school. When I arrived at my new school, they told me I needed to take shop to graduate. I asked whether everyone had to take shop, and they told me "well girls can take Home Ec". I asked "then can I take Home Ec instead?" So they looked at the rule and saw that I could, although that had never been done. So I took Home Ec and Child Care, because I was the new kid in town and I figured I'd have a better chance of meeting girls that way. As my Uncle Jim once told me "You fish where the fish are."

 

[donheff]

The whole class had to take home economics in 7th or 8th grade. I learned a little bit about cooking, how to sew on a button, use a sewing machine, and a few other things. What they really need is home finances in HS.

 

[iloveyoga]

I liked Home Ec and I took the sewing classes offered for years, with one of my good friends of course. My grandmas actually taught me to sew though. I still remember how to make a good white sauce.

 

[Sunset]

My family moved to Missouri between my junior and senior year of high school. When I arrived at my new school, they told me I needed to take shop to graduate. I asked whether everyone had to take shop, and they told me "well girls can take Home Ec". I asked "then can I take Home Ec instead?" So they looked at the rule and saw that I could, although that had never been done. So I took Home Ec and Child Care, because I was the new kid in town and I figured I'd have a better chance of meeting girls that way. As my Uncle Jim once told me "You fish where the fish are."

Now I'm on the edge of my seat.. You can't stop there.
The burning question is:
Did it work ?

 

[KB]

Nick,

When I was in junior high school, all the young ladies were required to take sewing and cooking classes. And all the young men had to take shop classes (woodworking and metal shop?, I think).
omni

My school had the same classes, no one even though to try and take the opposite sex classes back then. I was in JHS in 1964 and 65.

I think I must have only taken sewing, not cooking, maybe we had a choice of one or the other. I remember making an outfit and wearing it to school. If I took cooking, I don't remember any of it.

Later, as an adult, I took private sewing classes and have sewed since then.

 

[MRG]

We were traditional for the time. Males took shop, wood and metal, while females took home ec. Everyone took typing which was a great thing for me personally, years later as a programmer it was helpful.

 

[Winemaker]

Unfortunately, F&CS classes is no longer a class that was somewhat of a pleasure to teach or take. DW saw the class as a way to start kids on their right foot, learning to cook, sew, balance a checkbook and personal finance. After 10 years, it became a class to park questionable youths that needed a pass/fail grade to graduate. It also became a life skills class for some of youths that were mainstreamed, who shouldn't even be in regular school. Many came with their own aides, and made personal teaching out of the question. She had been physically threatened several times, and had to get PFAs on some students. (Only the students over 18.)

For the most part of her latter career, she taught Childhood Development Class, in which she could be more "selective" with her students. She operated an in-school day care for 3 & 4 year olds of the district, using the HS students as day care aides. You wouldn't be able to put a troublemaker or LD student in charge of preschoolers. DW thought that the class was a pretty good endorsement of birth control, as the HS students got to see how it could be a real PIA to have a small child, if you were still a child.

 

[braumeister]

Those types of classes were not offered when I was in school, but the typing class I took in high school was definitely one of the best courses I ever had.

 

[Philliefan33]

The whole class had to take home economics in 7th or 8th grade. I learned a little bit about cooking, how to sew on a button, use a sewing machine, and a few other things. What they really need is home finances in HS.

My HS had an elective course called "Personal Finance" that lasted one quarter. I took it as an elective my senior year. We learned how to write a check, balance our checkbook, paying interest / earning interest. I remember a project where we "bought" stock and then had to track it in the newspaper for a period of time, then "sell" it at the end. I don't recall anything about retirement accounts, but this was 1982 so maybe they were a little too new?

It was an easy "A".