Most people of any age, when they learn to knit, learn the rhyme that goes with forming the knit stitch. It’s a great way to remember the basic motions that go into forming the stitch.
Maybe you’ve wondered if there were other rhymes you could use to remember other parts of the knitting process. Bonnie Gosse and Jill Allerton have lots of great rhymes to help kids and others learn to knit, as well as lots of easy and skill-building projects to try, in their newly revised A First Book of Knitting for Children.
This expanded edition includes more instructions and more complex patterns for kids to try, including colorwork hats, socks and more.
The beginning of the book includes lots of photos and rhymes to help kids learn how to cast on, knit, do basic shaping, find and fix mistakes and bind off their knitting. Then there are many projects that just use the knit stitch and basic shaping such as a rabbit, pig, horse, basic doll and elephant.
The book goes on to teach purling and has a couple of patterns that combine knitting and purling (I made a cat from the original version of this book and it’s adorable).
The “more skills” section includes tips on reading a pattern, knitting in the round, different ways to increase and decrease stitches and working with color. Patterns in this section include a different cat, a few dolls, a couple of hats, a hand puppet and slipper socks, among others. Check out the full table of contents on the publisher’s website (the book is British; you can buy it from Amazon if you’re not in the UK).
This book is inspired by the Waldorf tradition of teaching kids to knit when they are young, and there are lots of photos of kids knitting and playing with the projects to show your young knitters that they can do it, too. This is a great book for little ones (and others) to learn the basics and beyond and get inspired by simple but cute and fun toy sand other projects to knit.
About the book: 168 pages, paperback, 26 patterns. Published 2021 by Wynstones Press, suggested retail $24.95.
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