High School Woods Course: Woods 101--TOPICS??

[Isaac Frisbie]

Hi All,

Interested in the variety of expertise here on the creek.

I'm a new woodshop teacher, just graduated college to be a shop teacher (yes, that's still around. Surprising I know.)

I am teaching 2 basic woods courses, and 2 advanced woods courses. I have an opportunity to prepare the basic woods students for higher level wood working.
My inventory currently includes: an 8" planer, 2 12" bandsaws, 2 10" disc sanders, a 10" tilting arbor saw with dado blade setup, a Powermatic 66 10" table saw, small drill press, radial arm saw, very limited hand tools and power tools (sorry neanderthals), two routers+tables, and a shaper.

My question to the forum is: what, in your experience, do you see necessary in an intro-level woods course? (outside of basic tool safety...that's the first priority and learning topic)

Additionally, what do you see as an absolutely necessary tool for students to be exposed to in basic woods? or what tool is necessary in our shop?

Thank you for helping the future woodworker,

Mr. Frisbie

[Jim Foster]

I think today, one of the secrets to keeping the students involved will be short interesting projects at first. If they can master making several easy projects that add value to their life or someone in their families, they might get hooked. An example would be a simple cell phone holder/charger. Maybe a stand for an iPad. Or a picture frame to hold an iPad

If you have a lathe, maybe a simple base to hold a favorite baseball, etc...

If it's something simple they can make for themselves and take home, other family members might ask for one too and get the student wanting to do more.

[Carl Beckett]

I would think sessions on wood movement would be critical. 'Understanding wood'. Growth/grain characteristics. Moisture effects. Structural considerations. Glue joint options. Comparison to alternative materials.

Then different joinery types, why and where the various joinery are appropriate.

These are all under the heading of 'technical design' aspects.

More advanced classes I would focus on 'design' (architectural design). I found that my early days were spent trying to get something to hold together and not fall apart. Once that was tackled, more time is spent on the design/look/style that I am wanting to achieve.

[Steve Eure]

First thing I would do is invest in a SawStop TS. Now I'm not a proponent of SS mind you, but with the liability issue and peoples propensity to sue these days that would be my first move. I do like thd PM 66 saw though. If it was advanced woodworkers I would say keep the PM, but you are talking about beginners who quite possible have never even seen a saw. Good luck, I am really glad that there is still some wood shop classes around. In the outside world there are very few individuals who know how to work on anything anymore. It 's a shame.

[Chuck Saunders]

I think you have all the tools you need for basic, but of course there is always room to improve.
In our basic woodworking course the students build three projects
1. a cutting board (stock preparation, gluing and clamping)
2. a small 6"x10" mitered corner box ( resawing, mitering, dado and routing)
3. Craftsman style plant stand (bunches of mortise and tenon joints)
Best wishes in your new journey
Chuck

[Reggie Lamothe]

My sophomore year the high school was being renovated and the wood shop was closed for months. My shop teacher filled the time by focusing on drafting techniques (drawing and interpreting plans ect) at the time it felt like busy work and in hindsight it mostly was but I actually use those techniques far more now that I would have thought at the time. I would also echo the earlier comments about working on multiple small projects. The flow of my high school shop was to work on one larger project a semester and while I enjoyed that, I think it discouraged a lot of the less-serious, or beginner students.

I love that shop is still a thing and I wish there was more of it. Schools should focus less on the Pythagorean Theorem and more on teaching kids how to make things!

[Matt Day]

Isaac, what’s your level of experience?

For the kids, keep it simple and keep them involved with small projects as others have mentioned. I think the details like Carl pointed are necessary and would be good questions on an exam, but do it while keeping their interest. Maybe glue up some demonstrations without considering wood movement and they can see what happens over time.

First and foremost always needs to be safety, I can’t stress that enough.

[Bill Dufour]

We made a little drawer about 6x8". simple butt joints but grooved for a masonite bottom. Can be used as a pencil tray or give to Mom/girlfriend to hold jewelry. Kids make enough and you build a cabinet to hold them for screws etc in the shop. In my shop wood was free for little projects like that. But if you wanted to take it home you had to pay for the wood. Sanding blocks with sheet cork glued to bottom.
Bill D.

[Richard Coers]

For a 101 class I would not let any of them ever touch a switch. Essentials are SAFETY! Then understanding wood grain; which would be learned with hand planes, chisels, spokeshaves and splitting tools. Then layout and measuring tools, then sanding, then finishing. A coping saw and egg beater drill will let them make their first project. With your limited experience, I would schedule a lineup of local professionals and ask them to demonstrate. At 200 level they can start using power equipment. Since you don't have a jointer, it's nearly impossible for them to prepare good flat stock. Get some scroll saws, a saw that about the safest power saw there is. I would think an essential machine for today's youth would be a CNC router. If you want to spark a kid today, you better have a robot somewhere in that shop! The most important lessons you have to teach is not how to make something. Your job is to safely instill confidence and light a spark in their soul to enjoy craft and the process of the craft. Remember, it's the journey, not the destination that will provide the reward. Post where you live so maybe some members here can come in and demo. My Industrial Arts teacher influenced my entire life. Not a month has gone by in my 49 years since graduating from high school when I didn't make something or draw something (drafting skills were taught as well). The includes my 24 years of being a professional woodworker, 16 years as a draftsman and mechanical designer, and retirement.

[Isaac Frisbie]

Matt,

Thanks for the note. I'm teaching 9-12th with possibly taking on a middle school period of 8th grade!

[Isaac Frisbie]

Thanks for the note!!

[Isaac Frisbie]

My experience is woodworking as a hobby, college courses, and high school shop.

[Phil Mueller]

I agree with the projects Chuck suggested. I would consider getting a thickness planer. One of the first lessons has to be stock prep...flat and square and co-planer on all sides. I understand power tools are a big part of shop class, but I hate to think kids then believe they need $thousands in tools to enjoy woodworking. I would at least introduce them to what the hand tool alternatives are whenever possible.

[Lee Schierer]

The 101 level should be the basics. Safety, planning, material selection, joints, and basic finishing to includes types of finishes and their uses. Hand tools should be the predominate tools, with introductions to power tools later after basic skills are achieved.

The 202 level should advance from the sum of the 101 level to more advanced and complicated projects, joints, finishing techniques. At this level power tools should be introduced and used only once the student fully understands the safety precautions, including a written test. Any safety violation should be addressed by not having that tool available for a period of time to that student and a retaking of the safety test before it is restored. Any injury even minor ones needs to be reviewed and discussed with the entire class to develop procedures to avoid future incidents.

[Warren Wilson]

I have been a hobbyist woodworker for decades and an educator for about the same length of time: high school teacher, principal and curriculum developer.

Here is a link to British Columbia’s grade 10 woodworking curriculum. From there you can navigate to other practical subjects and grade levels. https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/adst/10/woodwork

Usually the jurisdiction in which you are working will povide similar documents. And generally they are organized in a similar manner: from the “biggest” ideas down to practical suggestions. Something you might ponder up front is how you will evaluate student work — that will have a great impact on what they do.

We have put Sawstop saws in all high school shops. They won’t prevent kickback accidents, but everyone is a little more comfortable with them.

There seems to always be a trade-off between substanial learning and fun projects. So I am sure you will enjoy deciding what it is you really want to teach. For me the key outcome of woodworking has been pride in workmanship.

A great place to start — which you have probably already done — is to contact a few local woodworking teachers to get project ideas. Everyone remembers those first fiew years as challenging, and just about everyone will be pleased to give you ideas and advice.

[Von Bickley]

Glad to see a wood-working class in school. My first experience in wood shop was in the 8th. grade. Made a book case and cut the dados with a hand saw and chisel. My grand-son recently had one semester of wood shop and their project was to build a simple shelf. They did use a table saw & a router. He gave me his shelf for a Christmas present and I proudly mounted it on the wall above my computer.


403586

How do you keep the picture from being rotated???

[Scott Buehler]

Alot of the high school around me are getting entry level CNC machines for the kids to learn, kids love technology! But I think joiners and table saws are a must to learn about, basic joinery skills; dados mortise/ tennon, etc. Good luck, I learned most of what I know from my high school teacher!

[William Hodge]

I have helped kids of various ages with woodworking.

Some people are inspired by having a lot of different material on hand. Others, like me, draw a plan, get materials, and machine and assemble them into a product.

One project that has worked well with kids is wooden airplanes and rockets. The airplanes need wings with the correct bevels, front and back. They can be launched from a spring loaded catapult. Rockets are easier. Boats with sails are good for younger kids.

A more academic exercise is wooden scale models of the student's homes. All the wood will be thin, and can be cut on a band saw, scroll saw, or by hand. Hand tools work well. Learning to sharpen chisels and planes is a must. A scale drawing from field measurements, using Sketchup, is a good place to start.

If kids really want to learn how to build furniture, teaching them how to mill wood flat and square with a jointer, planer, and table saw; and how to sharpen a chisel, is the beginning.

[William Adams]

I think a lesson plan which works from the principle of there being two basic divisions of furniture:

- platforms
- boxes

would be a good basis to begin from.

Have you studied the history of traditional crafts instruction? This quote about the Sloyd method is insightful:



The goal of ... this training was not just to help find a job, but to help round out the person. Students may never pick up a tool again, but they will forever have the knowledge of how to make and evaluate things with ... hand and ... eye and appreciate the labor of others.

[Lee Schierer]

How do you keep the picture from being rotated???
403591

The best way is to preview your photos in a photo editing program and see how they display. That is what I did with your photo. When you see the photo is wrong in a post you have 24 hours to make changes. You might also want to read through the various post regarding photo orientation in the Tech Support Forum. (https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?258495-Why-your-photos-show-up-sideways-on-SMC)

[Tony Leonard]

I took Woodworking 101 and 102 as an adult about 20 years ago. The most valuable thing I learned was safety. He taught us all the things that are not intuitive. Also taught us the safety zones around all the machines for ours and those around us. Our 101 class involved mostly hand tools to show the relationship/evolution from hand tools to power. We built a very simple book stand with a couple of angles and a dado. Goo start. 102 was more power tools and we built a small Shaker style table with tapered legs, routed edges, and a drawer. That taught us a lot. We were at least introduced to the basics of stock prep, joinery, panel glue-ups, and routing. He did a lot of the setups, but explained them. Then, we would all do that operation. That seemed to work pretty well and was a good time management technique. We used pile of southern birch that he got a good deal on.

Good luck with your classes and thanks for the effort to teach our young folks. They'll learn more than woodworking for sure. I like the idea of cell phone stands and such as the kids can relate to that. There are some cell phone amplifier stands out there to that are fairly simple. Oh, one last thought is measurement and marking techniques. And maybe a few fractions!

Tony

[Von Bickley]

403591

The best way is to preview your photos in a photo editing program and see how they display. That is what I did with your photo. When you see the photo is wrong in a post you have 24 hours to make changes. You might also want to read through the various post regarding photo orientation in the Tech Support Forum. (https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?258495-Why-your-photos-show-up-sideways-on-SMC)

Thanks Lee,
I took the photo with my phone, downloaded to my computer, rotated the photo and saved it. When I downloaded to SMC, it went back to it's original position????.

Thanks again for rotating the picture. Have a good day.

[John K Jordan]

I didn't get to read the other responses yet, but in my opinion one thing is very useful for ALL who work with wood, whether building furniture, woodturning, carving, etc. It's so basic and so fundamental but unfortunately often ignored when in a hurry to get to making shavings and sawdust.

That's the structure of wood, how it grows in annual spurts, how it behaves when drying, and how it moves with the seasons.

It's easy to focus on the tools and projects but a little effort towards learning about the wood itself can be so useful in the long run. There are so many people today who work with wood as a hobby or a job and don't have a good basic understanding of the material.

The basics might include how to identify the difference ways boards are cut from the tree, why certain cuts shrink and warp in certain ways (why this board cupped and this one twisted), and the effect grain orientation has on working it. It's important to know how wood is dried and how to test for dryness. I might include a short introduction of some common exotic woods they may eventually encounter, such as ebony. Show samples of burls and figured wood and where they come from. Compare manufactured wood products such as plywood, MDF, OSB.

If nothing else, get a copy of R. Bruce Hoadley's book Understanding Wood: A Craftsman's Guide to Wood Technology, read through it, and pick out some useful parts to teach - illustrated with actual pieces including if possible some things that have gone wrong due to not understanding the wood.
https://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Wood-Craftsmans-Guide-Technology-ebook/dp/B004WYO862

I keep several things in my shop just to show students. This piece of holly actually looks better in the picture than in the hand!

403609

Another thing I think is important is an introduction to how to identify wood. A basic 10x hand lens and a razor blade can instantly show why red oak and white oak are so different in durability, the diffuse porosity in woods like maple, cherry, and walnut, and the huge differences in rays. Hoadley's other book, Identifying Wood, is what got me started on identifying wood as a hobby. There are other good on-line resources, including the very valuable Wood Database. In addition to very good detailed descriptions of most species we may encounter, Eric includes some excellent articles on wood identification:

https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/the-truth-behind-wood-identification/
https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/wood-identification-guide/ (especially section 7)
https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/hardwood-anatomy/
etc.

MANY other good articles are in the list:
https://www.wood-database.com/wood-articles/

Another good reference students might find useful is hobbithouseinc, an incredible depository of pictures of wood. It is especially useful to show some of the wide variation on the appearance of even the same species. Just pick and scroll down through one, for example Black Walnut: http://hobbithouseinc.com/personal/woodpics/walnut,%20black.htm

BTW, congratulations on your graduation and career choice! Teaching is incredibly challenging and rewarding! You may never know how much you will change lives. I teach woodturning in my shop, usually to one or two students at a time, and I find it incredibly rewarding. (I hope any woodworking class would include at least a visiting woodturning demonstrator at some point. :))

JKJ






Hi All,

Interested in the variety of expertise here on the creek.

I'm a new woodshop teacher, just graduated college to be a shop teacher (yes, that's still around. Surprising I know.)

I am teaching 2 basic woods courses, and 2 advanced woods courses. I have an opportunity to prepare the basic woods students for higher level wood working.
My inventory currently includes: an 8" planer, 2 12" bandsaws, 2 10" disc sanders, a 10" tilting arbor saw with dado blade setup, a Powermatic 66 10" table saw, small drill press, radial arm saw, very limited hand tools and power tools (sorry neanderthals), two routers+tables, and a shaper.

My question to the forum is: what, in your experience, do you see necessary in an intro-level woods course? (outside of basic tool safety...that's the first priority and learning topic)

Additionally, what do you see as an absolutely necessary tool for students to be exposed to in basic woods? or what tool is necessary in our shop?

Thank you for helping the future woodworker,

Mr. Frisbie

[Derek Meyer]

When I took industrial arts as a sophmore in high school, we spent the first quarter doing leatherworking (carving and stitching). Then we spent a quarter learning the basics of drafting and using them to design a wood project that we would build during the second semester. Our main tools in the shop were a table saw, jointer, planer, drill press, radial arm saw and shaper. Our instructor spent two or three weeks going over safety and demonstrating proper use and technique of the tools. He also had a rule that you had to demonstrate to him that you could follow his instructions and use the tool safely under his supervision before he would allow you to work by yourself. He also required that you explicitly ask permission from him before using any power tool, so he knew what you were doing and could keep an eye on you.

[Gary Ragatz]

Isaac,

Sounds like you have a fun challenge in front of you. I've developed a lot of courses over my career (none of them on woodworking), and I've always found it helpful to look at what others have done in terms of content, sequencing/structure, exercises/projects, etc. and then adapt the best of those ideas to my style and preferences. Here are a few resources that might help you flesh out and build on some of the good suggestions you've gotten here.

https://www.htps.us/curriculum___instruction/content_areas/applied_technology/woodworking_1
http://valleyoakscharterschool.org/highschool/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2014/05/BasicWoodworkingText.pdf
http://www.maucks.com/curriculum/woodworking-curriculum/course-syllabus-and-expectations/

[Bob Falk]

We have a very successful WW program at our local HS. That success is due to a very enthusiastic teacher, but also because a local woodturning club got involved. Club members volunteer several days a week to help teach kids woodturning. They (the club) bought a bowl lathe for school use (the club holds meetings there once a month and so it was a win-win). The kids love it and produce some beautiful work. The woodworking classes are so successful that more classes had to be added to accommodate the 87 kids that were on a waiting list. I guess what I'm trying to suggest here is that you might try to tap into the local woodworking community...they can be a great resource for helping demonstrate, donating tools, etc. Woodturning is a very good, and relatively safe, craft to get kids interested in woodworking. Results are more immediate than many other projects and help build confidence for more advanced projects.
I second the recommendation on purchasing a Sawstop.

[Jake Hillestad]

You should already have some basic curriculum documents created at the district level that detail the scope and sequence of your courses. Look there first to figure out what your expected to be doing.

After that point there is about 1000 variables you're going to have to look at, good luck.

Few things to keep in mind (other than safety):

- What is the focus of your program - are you furniture oriented, cabinetry, knick knacks made of wood?
- What is your comfort level and knowledge level? If you don't know it I wouldn't be trying to teach it.
- Can you keep a shop running? You're going to find you spend a huge chunk of your time keeping machines functioning and adjusted. They don't generally teach that in your voc. ed program in college.
- What can you do with what you've got? i.e. if you don't have a mortiser I wouldn't be making a lot of projects that rely heavily on M&T joinery.
- Whats your budget, do you charge shop fees? You need to live within your budget which is likely inadequate - figure out what you can actually support and be weary of consumable costs. Don't expect administration to be receptive to large purchases outside your budget.
- What is your timeline - semester or term class? 8 period day, block schedule, or hybrid? - Set them up for success timewise, don't bite off more than you can chew within the time allotted.
- What do your numbers look like? Class of 24 is a different monster than a class or 12 - content and timelines need to adjust accordingly.
- Don't kill them with the minutiae within the content - feed them what they need to know and get them working. If they have a genuine interest they'll come to you for more, if you force feed them you'll turn them off real quick and lose the class.
- Don't assume they are there day one with a deep love of all things wood and are instilled with pride in their craftsmanship, yada yada yada. 1 in 20 is going to be "into" it. The rest are there for the grade (easy A dontcha know) or because their other choice was something more distasteful to them.

Saw some opinions that you should have them read "xyz" - do this if you want to lose them. Another good way to lose them, restrict them to hand tools (which it doesn't sound like you have anyway) while there is a shop full of power tools staring at them. They will not understand, they will not thank you later.

If that sounded a bit pessimistic then my apologies but you just stepped into something you don't fully grasp yet if you haven't been there.

Without a lot of information here would be my suggestion for an intro level class assuming your knowledge is adequate and the shop space/equipment is adequate and a class size between 10 and 18 with a semesters worth of time (Aprox. 65 instructional hours). Furniture oriented curriculum.

Measurement
Safety
Planning (B.O.M)
Stock Prep
Simple Intro Project (Cutting board using scrap)
Finishing
Joinery
Fasteners
Term Project (Something reasonable - jewelry box, basic end table, etc)
Final

[Doug Dawson]

I have been a hobbyist woodworker for decades and an educator for about the same length of time: high school teacher, principal and curriculum developer.

Here is a link to British Columbia’s grade 10 woodworking curriculum. From there you can navigate to other practical subjects and grade levels. https://curriculum.gov.bc.ca/curriculum/adst/10/woodwork

Usually the jurisdiction in which you are working will povide similar documents.

I didn't see any actual woodworking content there. High school kids may not be ready to handle that level of abstraction.

Because the job opportunities for the kind of woodworking we talk about here are so limited, I would think that high school courses would be more oriented towards the construction trades. Either that or survivalists. I would tend to steer things in that direction.

[David Utterback]

Lots of good ideas already posted. Likely most if not all would agree on the importance of safety. With the age group, I believe it is important to make it fun, making projects that students can easily complete while also being able the afford materials and supplies.

If you want them to work with hardwood, ash is generally available and about the lowest cost hardwood that looks good with clear finishes. Importantly, it is also very easily machined without much risk of tear out or splitting. For painted projects, poplar is a good choice with it's fine grade and easy workability.

If you want them to become interested for the long haul, although hard to avoid for woodworking projects, try to minimize the effort expended on sanding. It is my least favorite activity and can consume a lot of time if manually completed.

I would also try to instill a tolerance for errors and mistakes. They are part of the process for even many of us veterans and present creative opportunities for correction or concealment.

Someone mentioned a lathe with which desirable and quick projects can be completed (for those who may desire more immediate gratification). That might be best for the 2nd level class. You could also undertake to build a treadle lathe if expenses must be minimized. Please visit the turner's forum for some of the nicest product displays available anywhere. Forum members in your area may be willing to donate some materials and supplies.

Best of luck and enjoy yourself. Having done some teaching in the past and having numerous siblings in the trade, few occupations can be as stimulating and gratifying.

[Don Jarvie]

There are a lot of good ideas already but what is the purpose of the classes? Is it for basic skills, learning to create something by hand? Will the class be for freshman, sophomores, etc? Is it a one off, ie, WW 101 or will additional classes be offered over the time in HS, WW 201, 301 where skills are built.

Since this is part of a high school curriculum are there any guidelines you need to work with? It sounds like you need to provide a structured class over the quarter or semester. Does the school district have an outline you need to follow but you can fill in the blanks as you see fit? If a group of kids were showing up at your shop once a week after school then that’s different.

it may be beneficial to reach out to some of the trade schools like North Bennett st in Boston (NBSS)to see if they can provide some guidelines on what to teach. NBSS has a 2 year cabinetmakers program that could provide some outline for your program.

If you left it up to me I would base your intro course on their “Fundamentals or Fine Woodworking”. It’s a 40 hr class based on hand tools. First up is sharpening chisels and hand planes, setting up planes, using chisels, using planes to flatten boards. Then it was on to hand cut dovetails and mortise and tenons all hand cut. The final project was a sliding top candle box which used all of the skills learned. There were no power tools other than a grinder used for sharpening. Given you probably have 1 hour a week this course could last over 1 or 2 semesters. If this sounds interesting then I suggest you travel to Boston and take it, they offer 1 week classes so it may be a nice vacation over the summer. You just follow the program.

if this sounds good you could ask your local WWing stores for donations or discounts for tools. To buy all of the tools it was under 150.00. If this sounds like something you are interested in post your email and I can send you the information we received. Check out the NBSS website for more ideas.

[Charley Preston]

William - do you have more info, links, or photos to the airplanes and rockets you mentioned?

[Bill Dufour]

How about a small lathe and make car shift knobs, candlesticks, trophy holders etc.
Bill D

[Bill Dufour]

In my high school wood class we made a simple ? project out of 1x6 pine or maybe it was 1x4. It had to be ripped to an exact width. One corner round to a given radius, another one concave to the same radius. A mortice on one side and a tenon on the other, exact mating sizes. Once completed the teacher cut it in half and test fitted the joints for a grade. We had to draw up plans for every project before we got to cut anything.
Bill D

[Bruce Wrenn]

Teach them how to read a rule! Very few kids, or adults can read a rule. When I taught shop, Lufkin (as in tape measures and folding rules) made me a print of one inch that was about three feet long. You might find someone to do a CAD drawing for you. Even cooler would b a CNC cut inch, with all the calibrations, made from Baltic birch plywood. Eye protection is the most important safety item, right after attitude. Make sure that all machines have working guards, esp table saw. One of the first things I did was to build a Biesemeyer type fence for table saws. That was over 25 years ago. Two shop teachers later, they are still in use.

[Frederick Skelly]

You guys realize this thread is 18 months old, right? :) :) :)

[Bob Jones 5443]

Thanks Lee,
I took the photo with my phone, downloaded to my computer, rotated the photo and saved it. When I downloaded to SMC, it went back to it's original position????.

Thanks again for rotating the picture. Have a good day.

Von, do this with photos:

1. Save your photo on your computer as a .jpg with a recognizable name in a folder you can easily locate.
2. Close the photo file (important).
3. Open the photo file from that folder.
4. Rotate the image 90º at least one time, and then as many times as needed to make it land right-side-up.
5. Save the file as its normal name.
6. Close the file.
7. Start your post in SawMill Creek.
8. When you want to attach the photo use the “Insert image” icon and “From computer.”
9. The photo will go into SawMill Creek right-side-up.

I'm going to post these steps as a new thread.

[Bill Dufour]

You guys realize this thread is 18 months old, right? :) :) :)


I bet their is at least one new shop teacher somewhere in the English speaking world this fall. I think the only real change in decades is they no longer make much in the ashtray and cigar box departments now a days. Look at the ancient Egyptian wood furniture and you see the same joints and basic chairs, stools, boxes of today. Just no plywood or modern glue/paint.
Bill D.
The chair below has the original linen seat, looking like a rush seat sort of. looks better then my stuff will in 3,500 years. I have had to recover the chair I made for my nephew only 30 years ago. Not even a tenth as long.
This chair was outside the tomb so I assume the stuff inside was better made and preserved.
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/543868
I have read they would paint the inside of the tomb last, after the owner dies, in a rush job and not bother to move the furniture to paint behind it.
(https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/543868)

[John Jardin]

John, your response is exactly spot on and its like you took the words right out of my mouth.
Last week I spent a day with my daughters nephew, 11 years old, working in my shop. I was careful to ask if he made things at home and his eyes lit up that yes he and his dad were always making something.
When he arrived I spent a lot of time like you talking about trees growing and the stresses which eventually must be dealt with when using wood. The structure of the wood like straws and how they loose and gain moisture and how that process should always be in your mind, and how to deal with that constant change in wood measurements.
Our project for the day was a docking station for his cell phone, I pad and lap top computer. He is mechanical and quite possibly a future engineer. I will send pics shortly

[John Jardin]

Pics of Caulins day in my workshop437223437225

[Roger Feeley]

Back in my teaching days in the early '70s, speaker cabinets were all the rage. I had the kids building tuned port bass reflex cabinets. There were all sorts of good things to learn. We used a book by Badmaieff and Davis. In addition to all the measuring and veneering and stuff, I had them calculating the electronics. They determined free air resonance of the woofers which dictated the volume and the length and size of the port. They chose crossover frequencies. But my situation was sort of special. I taught in a junior high where you hade to be expelled from at least two other schools to get in. I had a class size of 6. Most of the kids were there because they were gifted and bored. One kid was there because he was going bald and was teased so he beat the crap out of pretty much everybody. We let him wear a hat. They were also well off. Their parents were thrilled to see them spending time and money on something besides dope.

I guess my point is that you should figure out what excites them.
Go get some past issues of Make Magazine. Consider multiple disciplines like involving some kind of motion or electronics.
--How about a wireless phone charging stand. A lot of phones charge wirelessly now.
--What about those game consoles that run on Rasberry Pi where they've ported over hundreds of the old original games. The kids could build the game console for the buttons, joysticks and screen.
--When my daughter was in middle school, they had no shop at all. The teacher had them building rubber band powered airplanes from kits. I was really impressed at what the kids got out of it.