Today at Clear Spring we had practice day for first through 4th grades. The First and second are beginning to make dinosaurs for their study of dinosaurs, so I wanted them to get better at cutting angled lines from a piece of 2 x 4" wood. All the parts of the T-Rex are cut from a single block with the exception of the dowels used for arms and the tiny teeth in the movable jaws. The T-Rex is one of three projects from the Wisdom of the Hands program that Fine Woodworking will feature on their website in February. Of course the students in their practice today had to make things. Who could resist? Some made cars and trucks or sculpture, Bella made an alien. Practice is even more fun when there is something to be made from it.

The 3rd and 4th grade students will be doing two projects in the coming months that require the use of the coping saw. This was the day to introduce that tool and get them familiar with its use. So, I provided 1/4" OSB to practice their cuts. They drew curving lines and cut the practice piece into small parts that they decided could be kept as puzzles. So what began as mere practice became another project which the kids loved as you can see in the photos above.