Heather Latter
Really tough guys crochet—at least, that’s what a sign in Tanya Kroocmo’s class says.
Crossroads School students in Grades 6-8 made the sign after beginning a crocheting project five weeks ago as part of their art class.
Called “Caps for Good” and sponsored by the Save the Children Foundation, the program aims to provide caps for newborns in Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
“I saw an ad in a parenting magazine and thought we could do that,” Kroocmo noted, though admitting reaction was mixed when she announced the project to the class.
“Some were excited and some groaned a bit,” she recalled, explaining she taught the students how, around the world, nearly four million babies die each year in their first month of life—mostly from preventable and treatable causes.
She told them the baby caps are a simple yet effective tool to keep babies warm and, ultimately, contribute to reducing newborn deaths in the developing world.
“They understood the importance and soon everyone was excited about it—even the boys.”
The only problem was that Kroocmo didn’t know how to crochet.
“I learned off YouTube,” she remarked. “So we learned together.
“Most of the students picked it up quite easily.”
By Friday, before they left for March Break, the students had reached their goal of making 100 caps to send to newborn health programs in Third World countries.
The students were able to get plenty of help from the two educational assistants in the classroom, Angie Vanderaa and Kathy Pattison.
“Kathy is our resident ‘crochet guru’ and her expertise was really helpful for many kids,” Kroocmo lauded.
She noted while the students learned to crochet two different styles of infant caps, many added their own personal touches to the creations.
“Every hat is unique because we had many different types and colours of yarn, but some students put their own flair on them, too, with tassels and pom-poms,” Kroocmo said.
“They really got creative with it.”
One student even came up with their own crochet pattern for a cap while a male student impressed Kroocmo with his camouflage version.
“It was especially neat to see some of the boys really get involved in the project,” she added, noting after the first day of the project, two boys returned to school with finished caps.
And while some students were able to complete a hat in a day and others took five weeks to finish just one, Kroocmo stressed it was okay because the project still taught the students so much.
“They learned about global citizenship and became proud of their work,” she reasoned.
And when Kroocmo offered to bring in a treat when they completed their goal, one student said they didn’t need a reward because their reward was being able to make hats for babies who needed them.
The students also enjoyed being able to send a message along with each cap to the mom and baby who eventually would receive it.
And some even have taken their new skill of crocheting beyond the classroom—already making hats for relatives and babies they know.
“It was a really great project,” Kroocmo enthused.
“It’s something I would certainly do again, and maybe next time we’ll try knitting.”
