More Knitting Hands

Last year, thanks to Donors Choose, I was able to start a knitting club at the New York Harbor School. The Harbor School is a new, small, maritime-themed school in the Bushwick section of Brooklyn. As a guidance counselor, I try to encourage students to participate in activities they enjoy--activities which allow them to relax, to feel a sense of pride, and to feel challenged. Because knitting has always done these things for me, I thought I would try to teach some kids to knit. I could have never anticipated what a phenomenon the knitting club would turn out to be. Within a week of its commencement, I had over forty students who wanted to learn to knit. I was bringing in my own knitting supplies from home because the materials I had received from Donors Choose were distributed within the first fifteen minutes of the first meeting of the knitting club. The thing that surprised me most was the diversity of students who wanted to knit: boys and girls, athletes and bookworms. Because I was so thrilled with the success of the knitting club, I wrote an article about it for The Wall Street Journal online. (You can read that article by going to www.wsj.com/school and clicking on the link to the counselor's journal.) As a result of that article, donations of leftover yarn and needles began flowing in from all over the country. My knitters were getting better and better, and were eager for more advanced projects. By the end of the year, not only had they produced scarves and hats, but some had knit purses, bookbags, wrist cuffs, and cell phone holders! The actual club sessions were amazing. Students who never spoke to one another would sit and help each other learn the basics of knitting. When a knitting project was completed, the student carried it around to show everyone. Students complimented each other, and the pride they took in their work was profound. I want to keep the knitting club alive and strong this year. I would love materials that would allow the veteran knitters to make some more complicated pieces, as well as refill my supplies available for beginners. I anticipate at least twenty returning club members from last year, as well as fifteen to twenty new knitters. Knitting has allowed some of the most angry, unpredictable students in the school to feel a sense of pride and accomplishment. It has also brought together groups of kids who normally would never interact. The knitting club has helped to create a community of creative, motivated young people who are proud of their new-found talent.