Knitting Ninjas

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Zionsville West Middle School students needle their way into growing hobby

By Heather Lusk

They gather weekly to knit and chit chat about their day, movies they’ve seen, books they’ve read, their pets and families. They help each other with stitches and show off new patterns.

But this is not your average knitting club. The Knitting Ninjas are comprised primarily of fifth- and sixth-grade students at Zionsville West Middle School.

“It reminds me of the women’s groups I go to,” said the club’s advisor, Julie Breuninger, who is a Zionsville West school counselor. “We just sit around and chat together.”

Breuninger – who patiently alternates between assisting a student’s new project, helping them reposition needles and repairing dropped stitches – learned to knit when she was slightly younger than these students thanks to an aunt in England. “And then I really didn’t knit much,” she admits.

When her daughter required a knitted item for a costume in a school musical, Breuninger decided to knit it herself and remembered how much she had enjoyed it. She’s been knitting ever since.

Now she teaches and assists a group of girls (and occasionally boys) at each club meeting. Their projects vary from booties to scarves to hats.

Most of them find the process relaxing, and some chose to knit when they had finished ISTEP instead of reading. Many find themselves knitting instead of playing computer or electronic games.

“It keeps you busy if you need to distract yourself,” said sixth-grader Camilla Walbank.

The students are learning patience, and, though most are hesitant to admit it, they’ve found that math helps in many ways. But above all many are learning perseverance.

Sarah Beck, a sixth-grader who first began knitting last year, spent nearly a week making a square as part of the group’s service project. They plan to connect the squares and create a blanket to be donated to a local NICU. But Sarah laughs that the week-long project would have taken only four days without the mistakes.

Mady Reid finds the first row the most challenging part of knitting and had to restart three times in the same hour that the group meets after school, yet she didn’t give up.

“The hardest part is where you forget where you are so you have to guess,” said sixth-grader Moriah Campbell. “Or when you drop a stitch and you don’t know what to do.”

The beginning

The girls are all smiles when they talk about the origins of the Knitting Ninjas. Talking over one another, they each wanted to tell the story.

“There was a girl from Zionsville Middle School,” said Mady. “They had a knitting club called Sit and Knit.”

Camilla recounted that the student had recently transferred to ZWMS and wanted to continue knitting, so she asked the school administrators to consider starting a club (the club at ZMS is no longer meeting). She was able to get a group together, with Breuninger ultimately being assigned as the teacher leader.

“When they took their club photos they did ninja moves with their needles,” Sarah said, “and decided they should be called the Ninjas.” And the name stuck.

That tradition has continued for more than six years, and now the annual club picture for the yearbook shows the group in ninja-like poses wearing as many hand-knitted items as they can find, many of which they have created themselves.

The group meets in the library next to a section of books about knitting, where they can easily search for ideas as needed. They use a variety of donated yarn and needles and can choose to knit around a table or can find a quiet corner of the library if they would prefer. Occasionally they watch a movie while knitting. “Some think it’s easier,” Sarah said.

“It’s harder at the beginning,” said Camilla, “because you have to get it all ready.”

On average 20 students participate in the club at the same time, with both girls and boys learning to knit together. Most students are beginners but advanced students are welcome, too.

They all want to continue to try different things and learn more about knitting, but some simply want to keep going.

“I want to make a hat and to actually finish something,” said Mady.

Young knitters: A national trend

Knitting isn’t just a big deal at Zionsville West Middle School – it’s picking up steam among young people across the country, according May Colucci, executive director of the Craft Yarn Council.

The Craft Yarn Council represents leading yarn companies and other related industries and provides information and resources for knitters and crocheters. It works with teachers around the country through a program called Teaching Teens: Learn to Knit and Crochet. The CYC and Joann Fabric and Craft Stores co-sponsor the program, which has been gaining in popularity.

“We’ve distributed more than 180,000 free yarn kits to junior and high school students, and we know from teachers’ feedback that the number of younger students, grades six and up, who crochet and knit is increasing,” Colucci said. “The students are enthusiastic about learning these crafts and especially love the creativity of making something themselves. Teachers love these classes because knitting and crochet have a calming effect on students, as they do for crocheters and knitters of all ages.”

In addition, Colucci said, learning to knit improves students’ motor skills and problem solving abilities.

Learn more about the CYC at www.craftyarncouncil.com.


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