Hey all!! It's been a long time since I've posted a question in the "Homeschool" section, but...it has begun! My oldest is old enough for "formal schooling" if you will and we will start to log hours (even though we don't HAVE to yet, just for practice for me.) Well, Beau is a great kid! His imagination is fabulous and he has so many interests, like I do. A sort of...craft ADD if you will! lol Well, he is incredibly interested in building things. I would like to get him started on building little wooden birdhouses, and so forth. Simple stuff. However, neither me nor my husband know ANYTHING about woodworking. DH has virtually no interest in woodworking or anything of the sort, whereas I would LOVE to learn and make things (I have inherited a ton of woodworking books from my dad from furnature, to toys, to decks. Believe me, if I learned, I would have a ball!). I don't want this endevour to be a hassle for DH (which it would be...) and then for Beau to get frustrated and quit!! In my dream world, DH would try it, like it, he and Beau could get into it together, and....MAKE ME STUFF!! lol Do you guys have any ideas on how to solve this?! I could really work the rest of his curriculum around woodworking: math (obviously), reading plans, history, and so on! PERFECT for his little unschooling spirit! Just not sure how to get this ball rolling. What would you do?? Also, if any of you or your husbands or anybody do this, what is the expense (because that really is a huge factor)?
no way, no how would that be happening here. Woodworking/building etc are just NOT my husband's giftings. He can fix a computer problem for you though and my kids will get plenty of hands on with computer programming, board game design etc. from him. I'm the one more likely to teach our kids to build something. But I'm very craft inclined. Dh just isn't and I really try to respect that although it does frustrate me. One thing that came to mind was home depot building days. Home depot has a free building day for kids on the first Saturday of each month. You go, you get a kit with the materials and you build. You get a signed certificate and pin for each project you make. So if you have a home depot near you maybe you could do that with Beau. I think Lowes offers something similar - we don't have one near us so I haven't paid that much attention but you could check the website or call the store if Lowes is more local to you than a home depot. I don't see any reason why you and Beau couldn't work on this skill tomorrow. I love browsing Ana White's website - she offers tons of free building plans. There's so much on there I drool over, the cost to you would be tools and materials. So that might be another resource to check out.
Look for little wooden kits, for first tries. There are bunches of not-too-expensive kits at Hobby Lobby, Michael's, and such, maybe even Home Depot and Lowe's, and most have all the pre-cut pieces you need and fasteners (brads, nails, glue, etc), so all you need might be a hammer, some sandpaper, paint?, or things like that. I've even found little kits for boats, birdhouses, and such, at Dollar Tree, that included the paints and a brush. Not very complex, to be sure, but baby steps, right? Or you could start even simpler with premade picture frames and woodls ...
Do you have Lowes or Home Depot near you? They do FREE kids projects one Saturday morning a month. I would also look at little kits, you can get them at Micheals or A.C. Moor and other craft shops.
My DH is also NOT a woodworker! lol I would just have to do it with the kid or it just wouldn't happen. What exactly is it that your son wants to do, specifically. For on the cheap, I personally would go garage/rummage/antique shopping. I've done a lot on my own very cheap- Reglued the tongue and groove of my antique dresser drawers. At the antique mall I bought a school desk and chair, and the chair was falling apart (mainly the glue had rotted and needed new). So it was sanded, reglued-and then refinished. If he wants to make bird houses then the kits would be great. Otherwise, I would probably be about looking around at what needs done around the house and start doing it!
I was going to say Lowe's too. We can't take our grandboy to them but a lady there saves the kits for him and we build them here. He loves them.
You could maybe get Dad interested by going to the Lowes build and grows. They have them on the weekend and are fun. They also sell little "real" toolkits for kids and the basic woodworking kits for simple projects. We do scouts and they used a lot of these kits our tiger year. The birdhouse being one of them and they also built a money bank. Anyway, for quick and easy with little background woodworking knowledge...I say go to Lowe's build and grows on the weekend and buy any of the neat little kits that interests your kiddo.
I like that Lowes gives them a little patch for each kit. The kits are all precut so you don't learn as much as from doing a project from scratch, but it is still a good way to introduce woodworking. It teaches them to follow the directions and use a hammer and nails.
Thanks! I will definitely check out something from Lowes or Home Depot! The closest one of those near us is about 30 minutes away, so it being once a month is helpful! As for doing things around the house, we rent and there really isn't anything he can do. What he wants to do specifically is to use hammer, nails, and make something (his words). He's the type of hkid who really does need to use his hands and to busy himself like that. He wants to make something useful. I have an antique school desk from the early 1940's that I want to revamp, and I would love his help with it, however there is always one obstacle...my husband. He 100% doesn't have a crafting/creative spirit, so it makes talking to him about this stuff...difficult. He would rather play video games and watch TV than go out and build something (which frustrates me to no end). When he and Beau communicate about this, I always have to translate. As a parent I can understand where DH is coming from, but as the female version of my son (if you will) I understand where Beau is coming from. DH may say, "Hammer and nails is dangerous! You'll whack your fingers and break them or misuse a tool and screw around and then you'll be hurt for the rest of your life! You need to STOP this!" and then Beau will retort (with clenched fists, very upset/emotional/angry), "I WONT I will use it right! I want to MAKE, I want to BUILD, I NEED to do this! Why don't you understand! Why do you hate me!" So here I am explaining that Daddy is just concerned with your safety and you will have to be taught proper tool use and safety precautions, or course. Daddy, what Beau is HEARING you say is that you are rejecting HIM for his desire to be creative. That's it. That's usually what it all boils down to. I completely understand where DH is coming from, but I connect more with where Beau is coming from. He needs to be BUSY with his hands doing something MEANINGFUL, and when DH rolls his eyes, huffs, or blows either one of us off with his nonchalance, then WE take it as a personal affront to our personality and his love for us. I've gotten used to it the past 7 years of marriage, but Beau is just beginning to express his creative ideas, and it's hard for him to take. His nature is to act out aggressively with his father. My resolution is to just do stuff with him myself, and connect with him that way, but I get really tired of hearing DH complain that Beau doesn't like him. Well, maybe THIS has something to do with it. :/ *sigh*
Meg, would you and Beau come build me some shelves?? I was just reading Six's posts about her shelves broke and how she fixed them up. My books look like her first picture (all over the floor) and I don't even have shelves to reinforce to put them on.... So could you and Beau come help me out???
I'd say if it's not something dad wants to do, it's highly unlikely you will change him, and you're just going to continue to frustrate Beau. Why not you and Beau do this stuff, and work on dad doing something dad has interest in with Beau.
Just gonna throw in my 2 cents here.... if dad doesn't want to do it he isn't going to. It doesn't have to be a man to do things like wood working or auto repair or any of those "manly tasks". I grew up with just a mom, no real dad in the picture (though men were in and out of our lives... they weren't "dads"). I taught myself how to fix the car (I can fix almost anything that goes wrong provided I have the correct tools), I can use most wood shop tools... and I can sew and bake (cleaning isn't my strong suit though... but I can do that too :lol: ) If he wants to do this, help him along. There are all kinds of little wooden kits out there... bird houses, napkin holders, Pine Wood Derby style cars... most are already cut out the kid just nails it together (sorry ladies, gluing isn't really woodworking... glue us just meant to give extra bond on heavily used parts or to hold on decorative items). I don't do much of this stuff these days, hubby is a big "tinkerer". He plays with wood things all the time and with the vehicles so the kids learn from him... but I do get my hands dirty from time to time.
I know that I can't change the man. I love him the way he is, but "video games" is not a teachable task. ha! I've found a lot of useful things to do with him that require little cost, and I'm just going to let him tinker. DH seems a little lost when it comes to our kids. He wrestles with them and stuff, but mostly remains hands off and frustrates very easily with them. I've taken the brunt of raising them the past 6 years (which doesn't bother me). DH is sorta reserved when it comes to finding his own things to do. He'll get there. Until then I've got a couple of things Beau and I could work on. Thanks for the advice!
My son was kinda the same way with his boys. I don't think he ever changed a diaper. He has no idea what to do with babies at all. He's all into hunting, fishing, and movies and music on the internet, and video games. Finally last year when his older one was 7 and younger one 3, it sank in that the reason they keep "bothering" him in his room is because they actually want to spend time with him. And that one of these days, when they're "big enough to do what I want to do", he's going to want to spend time with them, but they'll be totally disinterested because of his distance now. So he's made much more of a conscious effort to spend some quality time with them both, actually interacting not just focusing on a screen of one sort or another. One thing that I think made a bit of extra push in that direction was the Dad & Me Cub Scout camp, and the spring Family Camp. I paid the fees, bought the t-shirts, etc., and provided their transportation. I don't know when they've been just the 2 of them, or just the 4 of them, at all. They all loved it, and they're closer as a result. (As a result of those two opportunities, and some tall talking to DS in the weeks/months before and since.)
um I don't agree about the no glue. Before people had nails, people used tongue and groove, and pegs etc, with glue....I have great antiques with out one nail in them. But, there is glue in the tongue and groove/dove tail/peg like parts.
BTW, we are renting too, yet there's a never ending list of stuff that needs put together around this house-our lawn furniture, I got the lawn couch put together this year, but never got to the picnic table or the lawn chairs. (wood). Like I said my desk chair. I need to work on the antique desk they have too. My dresser drawers usually need to be checked on. I would actually like to redo some of our dressers completely. Always in need of more book cases, etc. Even renting there's just a never ending list of things needing done around here, that have nothing to do with what is the land lord's responsibility.
Start them young It was good to come across this post for so many different reasons. I will cut a long story short and tell you that I have had to look after both of my nephews over the years due to a broken marriage. These kids are now 18 and 20 and although they are both great with a computer they lack dexterity and motor skills. The fact that you are encouraging your child into woodwork projects is heart warming. I truly believe that far too many kids are allowed loose on their gaming and computers and by the time they reach adult hood it is too late to encourage other life skills. Well done you and good luck!
