wordsfromanneli

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Tag Archives: setting the table


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Setting the Table

These place mats are meant to help teach children how to set the table. I made this set for my nephew when he was about 5 years old. He probably already knew how to set the table, but if he inherited any of my genes, he might have had moments when he forgot what goes where.

Not only do the place mats show where the cutlery goes, but they are also an example of what the three primary colours are. To make a set of four, I had to add another colour for the fourth one. Do you know your primary colours? Which one of the set does not belong?


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Set the Table

When I was quite young, my mother taught me how to set the table. I think it’s something that most parents teach their children as soon as they’re able to help out. Sometimes children ask:

 

Which side does the knife go on?

Which side for the fork?

Which way should the knife be turned,

Ready to eat pork?

 

Sharp side in or sharp side out?

How close to the plate?

What if there’s a spoon as well?

Can you tell me, mate?

 

So I decided to come up with a way to make it easier for a child to learn to set the table. Somewhere I had seen a set of placemats that showed exactly where to put the cutlery and where to put the plate.

At the same time, it was a good way to learn what the primary colours (red, yellow, and blue) were. The green was a bonus.

I made these quite a long time ago (eight years), but as I looked through some old photos, I came across them. Since I’m going to a quilting retreat next week, I thought I’d share these with you. I didn’t use a pattern to make the placemats. They’re quite simple. But I did cut out the shapes for the plates and the cutlery using cardboard tracers.