This one is sort of extension on the crafty project from Part 2 where we coloured and set fire to some tiles.
This one is all about doing some manly DIY between dads and kids.
Now, the first thing to be aware of here is that doing DIY with your kids is absolutely not about having a mini workshop slave to tidy up after you and be a gopher. That’s the fastest way to get the kids bored and to make sure they never want to come and play again. DIY with your kids is all about teaching them to use the tools and to actually be doing the creating. It might be scary putting a saw in your kids’ hands but that’s what this is all about. If you can’t do this then this isn’t for you and leave the whole experience to the CDT teacher in school. But to be fair, if you can’t safely and comfortably teach your kids to use a saw or other tool in the right and safe manner then perhaps you should also be kept well away from those tools yourself.
Anyway, I’m not going to go into a long How To of teaching safe practice for tools as there are loads of tools you might be using for loads of different projects and if you ask 20 carpenters the right way to use a saw you’ll probably get 20 answers. So I’m going to just say ‘use common sense’ and if you struggle to find any then just do something else instead.
So for my example project with the kids we’re in the process of building a coffee table. This is a project we’re doing over several weeks as they’re with me on alternate weeks and with their mum the other weeks and I want it spread out a bit.
We’re using the tiles we created in Part 2 and fitting them onto a plywood board (properly fixed and grouted) which is getting a wooden frame edging with mitre joints and wooden legs to stand on. The colours we used on the tiles are to suit the new decor in the living room which my lovely lady has made happen (see my personal posts for her in action painting recently).
Obviously you can come up with any project you like and feel capable of doing. I was lucky in that I grew up with both my dad and granddad being very handy with hand and power tools (between us we did all sorts of construction projects and always took the approach of working out how to do practical things ourselves rather than hire in trades). This means that I know how to use pretty much any tools and also have a good selection of hand downs from both of them (OK there are a few bits I inherited from my granddad when he died that I’ve not fully identified yet but I’m sure when I have a task that needs them I’ll recognise what they’re for).
And remember again, this is about your kids making things and you teaching them. If they mess up or the end result looks a state then that’s your fault, not theirs. And it really doesn’t matter. The whole point is to be doing something cool together.
Here’s a short clip of Isaac using a saw to cut the base board after he’d measured it out, checked the angles with a square and drawn it all out ready. He also (correctly) used his thumb as an initial saw guide and then got all his fingers out of the way while I kept a close eye on him to make sure there were no saw jumps. A little blood is OK, a lot is bad…