Popular Woodworking 2009-08 № 177, страница 68

• Out of the Woodwork —

BY JOSEPH ILARDO

Hook Kids with Simple Kits

A project prepped for children passes on the love of woodworking.

A

/ \ few weeks ago my daughter told trie her 7-year-old twin 5 had discovered thejoy of working wood. With their Dad, they'd cut and nailed together a variety of wood scrapsof different shapes and sizes. Despite their Tun, the end result looked like-well -scrapsthat had been nailed together. Even the children seemed disappointed with the results. Could I, she asked, make them akit that would let them make something they could use?

1 was pleased and flattered that t he many shop-made gifts I'd given my grandchildren over the years had kindled an interest in woodworking. My daughter's request also offered a rare opportunity lo bridge a gap of six decades. So little of what 1 know is of interest to the twins, and so much of what makes u p thei r lives is I ighl-years away from mine. (!'m not atwin, 1 don't owna Wiisys-tem and my car doesn't even have a GPS!) I agreed immediately.

The completed project would have to be useful, as my daughter had asked. But 1 also wanted to come up with something t hat would be easy, quick and fun, as well as beingimpressive enough in the children's eyes to be worth the work. After weighing a few options I decided on two identical pine bookcases. What would distinguish one from the other was the way each child decided to paint and decorate it.

idid the grunt work (including prep-ping the stock, cutti ng pieces to size, routing stopped dadoes, drilling holes and sanding), labeled allthe components, and added to the package a few over-long strips that could serve asshelf supports, if the children wa nted to do some cutting. Their jobs were to identify each component fromanexploded drawing, fasten the shelves wilh glue arid screws, attach the back wilh brads, and glue

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on the decorative top and bottom pieces.

1 gave my son-in-law a set of detailed instructions, and suggested that he complete a dry-assembly before getting the children involved. He's not a woodworker, but he is a teacher, so 1 knew he'd be able to translate my instructions into language the twins could understand.

I delivered the kits and just a few days later, my daughter told me the bookcases were already done, complete with the pain ting and stenciling that each twin decided on, Eageras 1 was to see the finished products, my ant icipat ion was ti nged by a certain amount of anxiety.

Like many woodworkers who take pride in their work, I am a bit obsessive - not lo mention a perfectionist and finicky. So it was difficult to hand over my project to lhe children. Tocope, 1 kept reminding myself

that my goal From the outset was to have the twins enjoy building lhe bookcases, not to have my project come out perfectly.

Creating a kit foryoungsters is a terrific way to introduce them to woodworking. Children learn to plan their work and to follow instructions. They acquire attitudes suchascareandattention lo detail. Properly supervised, they also learn to work safely. Carrying an idea through from conceptualization to completion helps take some of the mystery out of the things they see and use. Perhaps most important, a kit is a way of sharing know-how and erasingthe years that separate generations pw

After a 30-year stint as a college teacher, toe became a student again sewral years ago when he joined a conmiunity woodshop. Since then, his projects have become increasingly amibitious; he's just completed his third leather topped cherry writing desk.

PHOraHfTHE AUTHOR