tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34011427.post2417091745221956118..comments2024-03-26T07:00:11.620-05:00Comments on Wisdom of the Hands: widening the comfort zoneDoug Stowehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13003845322415622289noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34011427.post-61467317924608503362011-01-07T16:42:45.701-06:002011-01-07T16:42:45.701-06:00In order for teachers to motivate their students, ...In order for teachers to motivate their students, they themselves have to be a model what learning is. This is a problem. Some teachers lack the humility that it takes to be this way. Instead, they correct everyone's mistakes, but theirs go uncorrected. I refer to this phenomenon as the "ivory tower syndrome."Chris Sagnellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09325679500057317981noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34011427.post-22220381260521789042011-01-07T16:41:05.048-06:002011-01-07T16:41:05.048-06:00John, the planes you bought will last generations....John, the planes you bought will last generations. So it is fantastic that you are giving the boys skill to use them.<br /> <br />Can you see the long term effects?Doug Stowehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13003845322415622289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34011427.post-61150675511158128492011-01-07T16:18:43.063-06:002011-01-07T16:18:43.063-06:00We know that test scores are only a small measure,...We know that test scores are only a small measure,but we have become a nation of pinheads. The real test for teachers should be to observe whether or not the teacher has motivated the student for outside the classroom learning. I, for one can claim that most of what I've learned has been outside the classroom. E tu? I am trying to remember the Spanish I learned in high school, and making a fool of myself everywhere I go.Doug Stowehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13003845322415622289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34011427.post-37840632122743559252011-01-07T15:05:25.552-06:002011-01-07T15:05:25.552-06:00I let my boys use my best tools too. As a kid I us...I let my boys use my best tools too. As a kid I used beat hand tools and came to the conclusion real work couldn't be done with hand tools. After working at Colonial Williamsburg my mind changed and I bought good quality hand tools. I got a lot of funny looks at NWA's Showcase when visitors saw my young boys using my L-N dovetail saw and sharp chisels. The crowd around the L-N booth was rather surprised when I had my son try a No 5 bench plane and then bought it for the boys' use as a jointer. My No 7 plane was simply too big for them to handle (As a side benefit that plane has become a favorite of mine!). I'm not saying that everyone should buy their children thousands of dollars of L-N tools but I do advocate providing them with well tuned quality tools.John Grossbohlinnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34011427.post-58602760007417547952011-01-07T14:44:01.417-06:002011-01-07T14:44:01.417-06:00I find myself having mixed emotions in reading the...I find myself having mixed emotions in reading the article from the New York Times about play. I am happy to see such enthusiasm about making play a priority. However, I am saddened when I think about why this article had to be written. Something very wrong is going on in the minds of people. I thank God for the way I was raised, and for the fact that I teach. This way I get to share some of the joys of my childhood with my students...until of course I am fired for their test scores being too low! Until then , I will share my love for play with them.<br /><br />-ChrisChris Sagnellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09325679500057317981noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34011427.post-81326498313862227572011-01-07T13:31:16.536-06:002011-01-07T13:31:16.536-06:00Enjoy that vacation! By the way, did you know tha...Enjoy that vacation! By the way, did you know that "Matapalo" in Spanish means "stick-killer"? Killing sticks is not what we do as woodworkers. Giving them a new life is more like it.<br /><br />MarioAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34011427.post-43132455279277782262011-01-07T11:46:03.762-06:002011-01-07T11:46:03.762-06:00I fully agree. I took metal shop and wood shop co...I fully agree. I took metal shop and wood shop courses about 60 years ago in middle school. I went on to earn a PhD in physics and became an inventor, with about 100 patents. I greatly value the manual arts education, in school and from my father in a home shop, that raised my mechanical intuition to the level I have enjoyed.dumpsterdiveladhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05296636733423295606noreply@blogger.com