making toys...

In order to show parents and teachers how to make models for them to use to instruct kids, I'm making some of the toys we've made over the years. This pair of horses is to pull a wagon on a fictional adventure on the Oregon Trail. In wood shop we made horses, wagons and scale models of the necessary contents for the wagons. The students wrote stories about their journey with families they made up. It was written up in American Woodworker magazine a few years back as an example of a school woodworking program that works.

Making models is necessary as it is very difficult for kids to make what they cannot see. Making models is also necessary for the teacher to gain an understanding of a project's appropriateness for his students with regard to their strength, their experience, their interests, and their capabilities. Making models first allows the teacher to anticipate where the children will have difficulties with the project and make decisions with regard to what tools will work best and which tools will be needed. The model is a necessary step in the planning.

Not all shop time requires models. Sometimes, after having had some experience and developing some skill, the kids have ideas of their own.

This morning the woodcarving club is meeting at ESSA and a beginning blacksmithing class will be underway. Come see. 

Make, fix, create and assist others in learning likewise.