“She told us that she’s been basket weaving for 18 years and teaching for eight of those years,” junior Rosie Halpin said, recalling the class period. “It’s a useful and exciting craft skill, and fun.”

“Everyone really enjoyed it,” Ms. Dusak, Mrs. Banks’ student teacher said, about the students. “It was a lot harder than everyone thought it would be. It was a lot of fun.”

Mrs. Banks is always looking for interesting activities for her Creative Crafts class to participate in.

“This is a crafts class, and many crafts are functional,” Ms. Dusak asked, talking about Mrs. Banks’ thought process. “She was thinking about different crafts we can do and she’s always wanted to basket weave, so she thought of Mrs. Higdon.”

Because she has been basket weaving for 18 years, Mrs. Higdon is quite an expert on the craft.

“She was really helpful and nice,” Halpin said. “We kept messing up.”

“It was a lot harder than everyone thought it would be,” Ms. Duzak said, echoing Halpin’s thoughts.

Though the techniques were hard to master at first, the efforts were worthwhile because the baskets can serve many functions.

“I can make some great Christmas baskets out of it,” Halpin said.

The experience was valuable for everyone involved.

“I love learning new crafts,” Ms. Dusak said. “I enjoy the fact that it’s something I can potentially teach others.”