Kids get the needle

ELDERLY residents are teaching children the tricks of an ageless craft.
Students from Pakenham’s Beaconshills College are taking weekly knitting sessions at Meadowvale Retirement Centre.
The children, in grades three to six, visit Meadowvale after school each Thursday, when they enjoy afternoon tea prepared by the residents before taking up knitting needles.
Teacher Judy Howell said the children were helping residents knit squares that will be sewn together to make a community blanket.
They are also knitting trauma teddies for the Red Cross and, when they have mastered a few more stitches, they will make penguin jumpers to help distressed, oilcovered penguins.
“The students are really enjoying learning to knit and sharing the love of the craft with the residents and have formed many new friendships,” Ms Howell said.
“They are also gaining a sense of what it means to be part of a wider community, and giving to those in need.”