Branches of

Home
Economics/
Major Areas of
Home Economics
OBJECTIVES

Discuss the Major

History of Home Importance of
Area of Home
Economics briefly. Home Economics
Economics
Brief History of Home Economics

•Emerging as early as the 1880s, the

goal of home economics was not only
to teach women how to cook and sew,
but also provided an avenue for young
women to attend college. It was not
until the early 1900s that home
economics became an organized area
of study, developed by Catherine
Beecher and Ellen Swallow Richards
who founded the American
Association of Family and Consumer
Sciences.
Brief History of
Home Economics
• It was these pioneering women who
first set out the seven areas of home
economics in an effort to teach girls
how to properly care for a home and
family and to open new career
avenues. Now known as family and
consumer science according to the Los
Angeles Times, modern home
economics courses now offer a more
inclusive education to all students,
including those in high school.
Major Area of Home
Economics
Cooking
•Since food preparation was central to homemaking,
cooking is one of the earliest disciplines in home
economics. Early home economics programs taught
women how to cook a balanced meal, and included
food safety and preservation. Additionally, they
studied how to properly set a table and learned how
to host meals, not only for their immediate families,
but for larger groups as well. This element of
traditional economics still exists today for both men
and women in culinary schools, culinary programs for
family and consumer sciences students, and in
nutrition degrees.
Child
Development
•In addition to cooking and nutrition,
home economics students were taught
how to rear children. This included
learning about the stages of child
development and how to correctly
respond to children at each stage. Today,
students who study family and consumer
sciences still learn child development,
which has become so significant that it
is, in many places, its own major.
 •Since women were the first educators for their children, teaching
them basic reading and math skills before they entered school, it was
Education and significant for them to understand how best to teach these skills.
Though education and community awareness, which included moral
Community and ethical lessons, were originally a part of the home economics
Awareness education, it has become so significant today that elementary
education has branched into its own field of study -- but one that is
still dominated by women.
Home Management and Design
•Early women who studied home economics learned the the elements of design in
order to better decorate and care for their homes. This area of study also included
cleaning and organization, which was significant because homemakers were
expected to keep the house clean and organized. Today, individuals who study
family and consumer sciences use these skills to enter design fields where they
thrive as designers, decorators, organization gurus and real estate staging experts.
Sewing and Textiles

•Another of the earliest skills taught to home economics

students, sewing was significant to the lesson plans
because many women sewed not only their own clothes,
but clothes for their children. Additionally, this skill came
in handy when clothing needed mending. Because
patterns require certain types of materials, an
understanding of textiles was useful. This element of the
traditional areas of home economics is still relevant
today as family and consumer science majors enter and
thrive in fashion design and merchandising fields.
Budgeting and Economics

•In addition to cooking, child rearing, home

planning and sewing, home economics students
learned how to budget. Because women did all,
or most, of the family shopping, they were
expected to understand how to spend wisely
and make the most judicious use of available
funds. Today, this traditional element of home
economics is still relevant in family and
consumer science programs as students learn to
properly budget, balance and invest income.
Health and Hygien
•In addition to caring for the home, students who
studied home economics learned how to properly
care for sick family members. This included
sanitation, keeping the sick family member fed and
quarantined from the healthy, and at-home
treatments for common illnesses. Today, some family
and consumer science programs offer this
information to students, though it is not commonly
its own area of study any longer.

Home economics courses serve different purposes at different levels of education
Home economics courses serve
different purposes at different
levels of education
In high school, students are
introduced to all the areas of home
economics and to the occupations
related to home economics.
Home Economics Education
In elementary and junior high
In high school, students are
school, home economics students
introduced to all the areas of home
acquire homemaking information
economics and to the occupations
and skills that are helpful in daily
related to home economics.
life.
In the secondary schools, home
economics courses often include
At the college or university level,
units on foods and nutrition,
home economics majors prepare
clothing and textiles, child
themselves for a choice of careers
development, housing and interior
in home economics.
design, family and consumer
economics, and management.
IMPORTANCE OF
HOME ECONOMICS
•The importance of home economics lies in its ability to provide tools
for understanding daily life in a global world and promoting
responsible living.
•The study of Home Economics is important because it provides
scientific and professional knowledge for schools, families, and
society.
•Home economics plays a unique role in national development by
acting as a catalyst between families and governments, contributing
to secure and thriving families and a more secure and thriving
nation.
https://education.seattlepi.com/seven-areas-home-e
conomics-1946.html

https://typeset.io/questions/what-is-the-importance-
of-home-economics-3h08avj20x
Thank you