Last week I ran across a fun Facebook post by my friend Patti Eaton from River Bend Career and Technical Center in Bradford, Vermont.  They were studying hairstyling and gave the students an assignment “100 Years of Style”.

Students could pick any decade since 1900, such as the 20’s, 50’s, or 90’s, making sure that each decade was covered.  The students were to research their decade to include the following:

• Men’s women’s and children’s hairstyles, fashion, clothing, shoes, etc.
• Fads, music, television, movies, etc.
• Historical facts and how they effected future style. Such as when women went to work in the 1940’s during the war, hair and clothing was impacted.
• Cost of living such as the cost of a new car, new house, bread and milk and even shampoo/conditioner.
• The average wages for a barber, stylist, etc.

Students were to compile their research and create a PowerPoint or Prezi presentation incorporating movie clips, music clips, record covers, photos, images, etc.  They were to also create a typical women’s hairstyle on a mannequin.  When presenting their presentation to the rest of the class, students were encouraged to dress in the part for their decade.

When the students delivered their presentations, Patti said they had students go in order of the decades so the class could see the changes in style, fashion and life style from 1900 to 2018.  Patti told me that the assignment was very impactful and informative for all the students.

Here is a look at their mannequins representing 100 Years of Style.

Great job to the students at River Bend Career and Technical Center in Bradford, Vermont!  Well done!

What I love about this activity is that it really helps the students see how style and fashions change.  When students start school, they are usually passionate about what ever may be trending at the time, such as color or flat irons, etc.  And they think learning about techniques such as pin curls, finger waves or even permanent waving is a waste of time because they are not services that are being performed right now in the salon.  This activity shows students that even though something may not be in style now, it will come back in some fashion or another and that taking time to learn it while in school will help them in the salon when these trends come back around.