Working with Senior Women, teaching and learning

I want to tell you about the project in which I worked, the \"Textile Art Workshop\" for senior aged women integration .Frutillar, Chile.

The project of Textile Art Workshops, funded by the Regional Ministry of Culture and Plades Foundation consists in the implementation of creative sewing workshops for older adult in the area. The objectives of the project were; teach the trade, encourage creativity of elderly students, create working groups in order to generate a new type of handcraft in the area, exhibit the work in different cultural spaces of the region and enable the elderly so that they can be themselves textile teachers.

During classes we reviewed different textile artists, from traditional crafts, contemporary design and illustration. Students learned about the new possibilities that technology could give to textile creators and the enhancements of handmade products, combined with design and contemporary views.

The techniques studied in class were: molds, cutting, sewing by hand and machine, decorative embroidery, endings. We also worked with embroidery calligraphy, inviting students to create a story with texts and image.

The students worked enthusiastically in each session doing extra work at home. During classes they were able to create a collaborative environment. Through conversation during work the students talked about the importance of textiles in Chile, the role of women in the chilean culture and the historical and social changes that may be reflected in crafts and local art. The students talked a lot about the love that they have for their city and how much they want to be part of the changes of their society.

I am very interested working with seniors, I have seen their learning abilities and how getting new knowledges improves their quality of life.

I have also seen that they love to learn and they love to teach other people about their knowledges.

I would love to see them teaching what they know to the rest of their community, it would be a nice way to make them get noticed and stay current.

I hope this kind of activities become more and more integral, inviting people of all ages to be part of educational projects with the elderly community.