If you were to ask me about my high school education, I could easily list a number of memorable moments. For instance, I learned to ensure that the teacher wasn’t hovering behind me when I decided to create a cartoon titled “Super Heroic Pecker” during study hall. I discovered that the cafeteria staff wouldn’t take kindly to a lunchtime order of “salad, no leafy greens.” I also learned that accumulating three tardy slips results in an automatic detention. And I somehow figured out that if I asked my history teacher to leave class because of “female issues,” he wouldn’t ask any questions.
However, when it comes to actual academic content, my recollections are a bit hazy (okay, extremely hazy). If you offered me $100,000 and a few hours with a celebrity crush, I still wouldn’t be able to solve an algebraic equation. I have vague memories of dissecting a frog in biology, but mostly I remember the unforgettable stench of formaldehyde. And while I can’t recall how to conjugate verbs in Spanish, I can still ask, “Who tooted?” — go figure.
Despite graduating and receiving a college scholarship, I felt woefully unprepared for the realities of adult life. Sure, we picked up a few random life lessons in health or home economics classes (like the importance of using protection and turning off the oven before leaving the house), but given the amount of adulting we need to do after graduation, I think we could have benefited from more hands-on lessons in essential life skills. Here are a few that would have helped me immensely:
Cooking Skills
In seventh grade home economics, we might have made brownies and soup, but soon after, we transitioned into sewing pillows—something I’ve never used. I learned to whip up a mean packet of instant ramen in my college dorm, but it took me a while to navigate the kitchen properly. My early marriage was marked by dry chicken and Rice-A-Roni. To anyone I invited over during that time: I’m sorry. I can cook now—sort of.
Nutrition Awareness
We really needed a class titled, “Enjoy Taco Bell Now Because Your Metabolism Will Crash After 30.” While we learned about the food pyramid, a deeper understanding of how food impacts our health and weight would have been beneficial.
Basic Home Repair
I always thought owning a home and a car was exciting, but I never considered that they would require maintenance to avoid catastrophic breakdowns. Learning how to change my oil, maintain tires, and perform basic plumbing repairs would have been incredibly useful.
Sewing Skills
Speaking of repairs, I wish I had a solid foundation in sewing beyond just stitching pillows. Knowing how to fix a missing button or repair a beloved stuffed animal could have saved me countless tears. Perhaps if I had learned how to hem properly, my son’s first Halloween costume wouldn’t have looked like it belonged to a giant (I may have gotten a little carried away).
Laundry Basics
As a teen, laundry was a simple task: I handed it to my mom and got it back clean. Now, managing laundry for a family of six is a whole different ball game. I’ve learned the hard way that there’s much more to it than just tossing clothes in and adding detergent. Understanding what fabrics shrink, bleed, and how to tackle stains like permanent marker or, well, poop, would have saved me a lot of headaches.
Financial Literacy
In school, we spent about a week learning how to balance a checkbook, and that was pretty much it. These days, I’m sure kids learn more, but it’s likely still inadequate for navigating the financial complexities of adulthood. With the multitude of credit card offers flooding college students’ mailboxes, a course on building and maintaining credit would have been invaluable. And while I might have dozed off during lessons on investing or retirement savings, I would have appreciated even a basic understanding. Taxes are inevitable (like death, right?), so a primer on those would’ve been great.
Money-Saving Strategies
The reality is that most young adults will experience financial strain at some point. Wouldn’t it have been great to learn how to stretch a dollar, or perhaps gain insights from extreme couponers? A crash course on alternative income sources, like selling items from garage sales or even donating plasma, would have been a bonus.
Effective Communication Skills
We spend a significant part of our lives interacting with others—from co-workers to neighbors to our children’s teachers. A class on effective communication could have helped immensely, especially for those of us who aren’t natural extroverts. Learning how to negotiate, advocate, and build connections could have been beneficial. A unit on constructive communication with significant others would have also been handy (though I might have missed out on the story involving a cheeseburger incident with my husband as a newlywed).
If I had been offered these classes in high school, I like to think I would have been better prepared for adulthood. In reality, though, I probably would have zoned out, retaining just enough info to scrape by. It’s hard to convince teenagers of the importance of skills they won’t need for years to come when they think 25 is ancient. I know I wasn’t any different, as I was too busy engaged in “important” activities like doodling caped penises.
For more insights on navigating adulthood, check out this article on our blog. And if you’re looking for an authority on home insemination, you can find useful information at Make A Mom. For a fantastic resource on pregnancy, I recommend visiting NICHD.
Summary
Reflecting back on high school, I realize there were countless essential life skills that could have better prepared me for adulthood. From cooking and sewing to financial literacy and effective communication, these lessons would have made a world of difference in navigating life’s challenges. Although I may not have appreciated them at the time, a focus on practical skills would have been incredibly beneficial for my journey into adulthood.