7 Year Old Son's First Wood Working

[Bruce Benjamin]

I have a 7 year old son and he's helped me out in my garage shop for a couple of years or so. Mostly sweeping up and picking up wood scraps or handing me tools or more wood. I've taught him quite a bit about shop safety and he obeys very well when it comes to that. My mom gave him a small toy handsaw that she picked up in an antique shop. I don't know if it's an antique or not but it's not much to cut with.

Earlier today he asked me if I had any wood so he could practice cutting with his new saw. You bet! I got him set up with some scraps and my vice on the end of my workbench. It's not ideal for him though because the bench is just about 38" tall but I don't have a smaller bench for him yet. I tried to set him up with a small Work Mate but he couldn't really clamp it well enough. He was happy with the vice though.

We quickly discovered that the saw was slightly more than useless so I let him use my trusty ol', "Stanley tool box saw". It's sharp an short but the teeth might be just a little aggressive for him. Especially when it's just about at shoulder height. He was a little frustrated at first but with some gentle encoragement and instruction he was soon buzzing away at the wood. Once he got the hang of how to start the cut and keep it moving somewhat smoothly I showed him how to use a square, (a very cheap square) and mark a straight line. It took a while and some more instruction but he got better and better at cutting right on the line he'd drawn. I went inside and left him to his sawing. He was very determined and stayed out there for about an hour cutting up nearly all of the wood into tiny pieces.

After dinner he went back out and finished off the wood I'd given him. Then he asked for more! I got it for him and watched him cut with concentration right along the cut line. He asked if he could maybe make something soon. You bet son! We're thinking about the standard bird house since it's easy to cut the pieces and nail/glue them together. A hole, a coat or two of paint and a small chain to hang it with and he's good to go! He asked me if I could show him how to use one of my power drills. Uh...Well, son. How 'bout starting out with my dad's old brace and bit drill like I did? I'll have to go borrow it from my dad but he doesn't use it any more and I doubt he'll mind loaning it to his grandson. I built several tree forts and 2 or 3 pigeon lofts using a hand saw, hammer and nails, that old brace and bit and a screw driver. Can you tell I'm pretty proud of the little cus? When he gets into something he really concentrates on it.

He just came in a few minutes ago after cutting for about another hour with a smile on his face a little sweat and what looks like a possible blister on his hand. Good Boy! Now he's playing with one of our pythons. And a few weeks ago he was telling me about this cute little girl at school that he was holding hands with. Of course by the time I was in the second grade I'd already kissed at least a couple of 3rd graders but that was just me.:D Maybe he's just not telling me everything. What a cool kid.

Bruce

[Ken Fitzgerald]

Bruce.....that's cool! Spend as much time with them at that age as you can! They grow up all too soon! And........some day......years from now.....he'll remember......the time Dad and he built that bird house!....My youngest....age 33......he remembers helping Dad frame in the basement....listening to the Beatles.........He called...he's in dental school now.......wanted advice on buying a tile saw....and laying floor tile in he and his wife's new home ...........they remember............

[Gary Herrmann]

Very cool story. My 5 yr old likes to go downstairs with me and hammer nails on occasion, so I know exacty what you're talking about.

[Vaughn McMillan]

Very cool, Bruce. He'll remember times like that with his dad. My first woodworking project was also at about that same age...my granddad helped me make a little cutting board for grandma. He cut a shape out of a single 4/4 maple board, then let me sand it and drill the hole for the hanging loop. After my grandparents passed away, I ended up with the little maple board, and still use it from time to time. (I also inherited the sander and brace that I used that day years ago.)

- Vaughn

[tod evans]

way to go bruce! my 20month old gets to cruise the shop, has his own hammer and a couple of wrenches, watches the ol`man intently when i`m building stuff. i`ve let him play with my good jap pull saw on some pine so 7-8 pulls and he`s through(required the assistance of bigger arms)
kids do well in the shop but at the age of mine require constant supervision. tod

[rick fulton]

Bruce -

I can feel your pride from here. Well written. Your son is taking after his father. I bet he is as proud of you as you are of him.

My uncle taught his 4 or 5-year-old daughter how to cut wood with a saw. While he was busy working on a project he could hear her sawing away. Then she says, “Look what I did Daddy.” She held out her hands and showed him half a dozen wooden knobs.

She had just cut all the drawer knobs off his shop desk.

rick

[Jim Becker]

Congratulations, Bruce. Get them started young and hopefully, it will stick for a lifetime.

[Sam Chambers]

My stepson loves to go down to the shop with me. When he was 4 or 5, I bought him a small hammer. I'd sit him down in the corner with a piece of 2x4 and a box of small nails, and he'd pound away until they were all gone. He's 11 now, and is in charge of hammering down any nails that pop up on the deck.

I was watching him one day when he was 4 or 5, and saw him whack his thumb for the first time. He was about to start crying when he looked at me, and saw that I was laughing my tail off! I told him, "Don't worry about it. Everyone who has ever used a hammer has done that to themselves." He looked at me and said, "Even you?" That was the day I lost my "Superman" status.

[Kyle Kraft]

I tell my son, "That's man-pain." Works every time!!:)

[Bruce Benjamin]

Bruce -

I can feel your pride from here. Well written. Your son is taking after his father. I bet he is as proud of you as you are of him.

My uncle taught his 4 or 5-year-old daughter how to cut wood with a saw. While he was busy working on a project he could hear her sawing away. Then she says, “Look what I did Daddy.” She held out her hands and showed him half a dozen wooden knobs.

She had just cut all the drawer knobs off his shop desk.

rick

LOL! That's pretty familiar too, Rick. A couple of years ago I was under my Jeep doing some fabricating and I was using my Sawzall. I had an extra blade sitting there and my son was watching. He asked if he could saw on a block of wood that was laying there using the extra blade. "Sure, be careful not to cut yourself." I go back to work and then stop again. I hear a sawing sound but it doesn't sound like wood anymore. I slide out to see him part way into the Jeep's front left fender flare!:eek: AHHHH! I somehow managed to maintain most of my cool. I didn't want to scare him off from using tools but I very carefully explained to him that he should never cut anything or use any tool that I don't tell him is ok. He was pretty upset at first but when he realized I wasn't going to get too mad at him he was ok. It was an expensive custom flare too.:( Ah, the fender around it had plenty of bolder dents on it anyway. :cool: This just added another story to the Jeep. He's a good kid.
He just got up about 15 minutes ago, came out and asked if he could cut some more wood today. I told him that maybe we can come up with more for him to learn. Man, that smile could melt ice. I also have an equally great 10 year old daughter. I have my problems and things aren't going as smoothly as they could be right now but those two kids are all that Really matters. Best thing I've ever done by far.

Bruce

[Jim Becker]

LHe's a good kid. He just got up about 15 minutes ago, came out and asked if he could cut some more wood today. I told him that maybe we can come up with more for him to learn. Man, that smile could melt ice. I also have an equally great 10 year old daughter. I have my problems and things aren't going as smoothly as they could be right now but those two kids are all that Really matters. Best thing I've ever done by far.

Amen to that last part...mine are the same relative ages and are now the focus of everything meaningful.

[Alan DuBoff]

Nice job with the GIT!

I started my kids with cutting boards, and there's several things they can do, but they get most excited in putting the mineral oil on them, as that pops the grain out.

I was even able to teach them to use the bandsaw a couple days ago

Hand tools are good for the kids, and mine like rasps, files, sanding, and laying out the boards in the best visual aspect, that's all good stuff for them to learn coordination and start making a project.

We just made one that is going to Japan with them today, we made it for their Grandmother. Something so simple as a cutting board will be used daily, and my MIL will most likely appreciate it. I learned back in high school that making cutting boards out of scraps is an excellent way to use up scrap materials, and very useful and make wonderful gifts. One year I made about 10 to give away as gifts during the holiday season. My parents had been using one of those cutting boards for about 30 years, and it still functions fine (although I smile looking at the small mistakes, the imperfections, but it was solid.

We made my mom and my wife cuttings boards for Mother's day this year.

I want to get my son to start cutting dovetails if I can, I think he'd be good at it, and it would help his hand/eye coordination.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

I have my problems and things aren't going as smoothly as they could be right now but those two kids are all that Really matters. Best thing I've ever done by far.

Bruce

Nothing more important IMHO!

Congrats Bruce!

[Hoa Dinh]

Hey Bruce,

It's sweet, isn't it?

The world will be come a much better place if there are more parents like you.

But no woodworker should be without a workbench. I made this as a Christmas gift for my son a few years ago.

Thanks for sharing.

[Bruce Benjamin]

Hey Bruce,

It's sweet, isn't it?

The world will be come a much better place if there are more parents like you.

But no woodworker should be without a workbench. I made this as a Christmas gift for my son a few years ago.

Thanks for sharing.

Well, Hoa, I did get at least some of the parenting thing right I guess. But now the trick is to get the kids to understand the concept of, "Do as I say, not as I do".

As to your son and that work bench...He looks right at home there and is a great looking boy but that darn work bench is a lot nicer than mine! I just showed my son your pictures and his eyes lit up. I told him it won't happen right away but we'll get him set up with something his size. The trick will be building something that is adjustable for height yet still stable. He's about average for a 7 year old but he's growing like a weed now and I'd guess that in a couple of years he'll be tall enough that a bench for him now will be too short for him then. I don't mind that with pants and shoes but a bench like you built probably cost more than my son's whole wardrobe. He asked me if he could help make it. I told him no, but that I would help him make it. He understood the concept after that. What better way to learn the basics that by making a cool bench. Now if I could just get him to pay for it too. Actually, thanks to his grandparents, he has a lot more money to spend than I do. Maybe he can buy the wood too and then he'll have even more appreciation for it than just building it. Great pics, Hoa. You must be equally proud.

Bruce

[Bruce Volden]

My wife and I are licensed foster parents (so far 61 kids)!! At present we have a 9 yr old boy who has been with us for going on 2 yrs. He always likes watching me in the shop and started "bugging" insistently about 6 months ago. Lets talk shop!!OK---coping saw is safe, cut scraps, glue scraps, follow lines etc. That was fun for him to get his feet wet. Well a couple months back I let him have a turn on the scroll saw WHEEE!! was that great. He did manage however to cut into his pinky finger (very minor) and learned an early lesson--SAFETY is applicable to ALL. Now we have moved on to the drill (battery). After many holes in differing materials I notice he is quickly picking up "common tools sense". I will not ever let him into the shop unsupervised and he respects that. Question guys / gals -- I have an old WARDS lathe--should I or shouldn't I let him "play". I remember back when I took shop, this was the first power tool we learned. What say you???Bruce

[Hoa Dinh]

...we'll get him set up with something his size. The trick will be building something that is adjustable for height yet still stable. He's about average for a 7 year old but he's growing like a weed now and I'd guess that in a couple of years he'll be tall enough that a bench for him now will be too short for him then.
Don't worry about that part.

The bench I built for my son doesn't take a lot of space. If he outgrows it, he can use my bench and the small bench can serve as an assembly table. In fact, that's what I'm doing now when he's not in the shop.

[tod evans]

My wife and I are licensed foster parents (so far 61 kids)!! At present we have a 9 yr old boy who has been with us for going on 2 yrs. He always likes watching me in the shop and started "bugging" insistently about 6 months ago. Lets talk shop!!OK---coping saw is safe, cut scraps, glue scraps, follow lines etc. That was fun for him to get his feet wet. Well a couple months back I let him have a turn on the scroll saw WHEEE!! was that great. He did manage however to cut into his pinky finger (very minor) and learned an early lesson--SAFETY is applicable to ALL. Now we have moved on to the drill (battery). After many holes in differing materials I notice he is quickly picking up "common tools sense". I will not ever let him into the shop unsupervised and he respects that. Question guys / gals -- I have an old WARDS lathe--should I or shouldn't I let him "play". I remember back when I took shop, this was the first power tool we learned. What say you???Bruce

bruce, my first "sanctioned" tool was an old wards lathe at 8yrs old. i still wear scars on my head from chunks that weren`t chucked solidly. probably the safest tool to turn a young`n loose on.....even today i`m pushing my equipment but that old lathe tought me to pay attention to set-ups and duck when things sound funny:)
i`d say go ahead and turn him loose......my stupid mistakes all occured when my father was gone and i "knew" how to run the machine properly..02 tod

[Bruce Benjamin]

Don't worry about that part.

The bench I built for my son doesn't take a lot of space. If he outgrows it, he can use my bench and the small bench can serve as an assembly table. In fact, that's what I'm doing now when he's not in the shop.

That's a great idea, Hoa. I need a good assembly table anyway so it can be used for both tasks now. My son was trying to cut some curves with the cross cut saw and, needless to say, he wasn't having the best success. We made a quick trip out and he came home with an inexpensive coping saw and a small hammer. I let him hand the cashier the money and take the change and he sure did look and act just a little bit more grown up. It's funny to see him beaming as he grabbed the bag and walked out of the store. I still had to remind him to give me back my change but I waited 'til we were in the parking lot. :D I think he gets that from his mother. ;) In a few minutes we're all going out to grandma and grandpa's house to get grandpa's old brace and bit.

Complaining about sanding duties is a common thing around the ww forums. I gave my son a sanding block with some 60 grit on it and in about an hours time he took a 4x6x3/4 rectangle of oak and made it into something resembling a well used bar of soap. That 60 grit isn't 60 grit anymore either. I've tried to introduce him to hand tools before but this time it was all him. I've never seen him this enthusiastic about anything other than a brain-numbing video game. He asked if there were any wood working video games. I hope he was kidding.

Bruce

[James Ayars]

My 2.5 year old daughter likes to help me "fix" things in the garage. When she's out there with me, she'll get a hand drill out of my drill pres cabinet(no bits in it though), place the chuck over every wood screw she can see and give the handle a couple turns. Other times, she'll take a nut driver out of the desk and do the same thing. Even better is when she gets one for both of us and tells me which screws to "fix" while she "Fix" the others.

In my case it was good that I had my kids later in life. I'm 42 and have her and a 3 month old son. I don't think I would have appreciated or enjoyed them as much when I was 32.
James

[Corey Hallagan]

That's cool Bruce! Keep him at it! I am sure those will be memories that he will never forget!

Corey

[Ben Grunow]

My 2 year old has a tool belt and every once in a while he brings it out of the toy box and asks to put it on "like daddy". THen he goes around the house and screws every screw and nails every nail with his little plastic tools. It's great!