A school class in stitches
When coronavirus school closures forced her to put down her chalk, one teacher picked up her knitting needles instead…
Children and their teachers have faced a huge disruption to their normal routine over recent months, with schools closed and home learning becoming the norm. It’s been unsettling for all involved, with children missing their friends and activities – but of course their teachers have also been missing them too. And one teacher, Ingeborg Meinster-Van der Duin, in the Netherlands, missed her students so much she knitted little personalised dolls of them all, complete with a knitted teacher!
SCHOOL’S OUT
Ingeborg explains: “By closing the schools during the Covid19 lockdown, there was some time to knit. While knitting I thought about all the funny and original children in my class.” While making the dolls, which take about four hours each to knit, Ingeborg also made them di erent for each child. “I have chosen colours for the clothes that the children often wear, and I gave them the right hair colour,” she says. “If they often have a braid or ponytail then I made that with the doll. I have also given children who often wear a sweater or cardigan the same type of clothing.” Of course, the children were delighted with their dolls, which they picked up when collecting belongings they’d left at school. “They thought it was very funny and had to laugh about it,” says Ingeborg. “They could recognise themselves well.”
CHILD’S PLAY
Of course, Ingeborg was already a keen knitter before this began – and other crafts as well. “I like creative activities such as painting, sewing clothes and of course knitting. I often knit, but then they are often rabbits, gnomes, bears, sweaters or cardigans.” Because of these skills, she was able to adapt an existing pattern to match the children she taught, as well as adjusting the proportions for her knitted teacher!
As the weeks have gone by, many of us have found it di cult to be away from the people we care about. We love Ingeborg’s a ectionate solution. “During the lockdown I knit each one of them. So I can think of them.”
What did you knit in lockdown? Let us know at simplyknitting@immediate.co.uk