My students are anxious to learn hands-on problem solving skills. This fall, over 80 students had their first opportunity to build something with wood. It was a simple six-sided bird house made for wrens. Using donated wood, students measured wood to length, used hand saws to cut square corners, drilled an entry hole and pounded 6 penny box-nails with new and donated claw hammers.
For the majority of students, this was their first experience building anything.
Only 12 nails were required for the construction of the birdhouse. Even after watching demonstrations of nail pounding, due to their inexperience and lack of manual dexterity, many students required over 20 nails due to bending them into unstraightenable shapes. Even though students built their own, often two students would be working together, one holding a board while the other cut or one holding two boards so that nails could be fastened.
Many students started this six-class build with the belief that they could not complete the project. After the bird houses were painted the majority of students were proud of their accomplishment and eager to bring them home.
My Project
Using metal fabrication tools, the direct outcome of these lessons will be that students learn to measure, shear, brake and fasten metal. This equipment will ultimately help these same students become better problem solvers, to learn about process, order of operations and gain an appreciation for the metal forming craft.
Utilizing the metal brake, student’s paper drawings will be transferred to sheet metal, cut out, bent and realized in 3-dimensional objects.
Students will begin fabricating metal by creating a small metal box suitable for holding supplies like rivets or nuts. As their skills develop, students will have the opportunity to fabricate heirloom quality dustpans. We intend to sell these dustpans in order to further finance the purchase of equipment, materials and supplies.
The Problem-solving and Hand skills students acquire in the Fabrication Lab will be directly applicable to their lives, whether they pursue the trades or another vocation.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mr. Kneebone and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.