Easy Carpentry Projects for Children (Dover Children's Activity Books)

Easy Carpentry Projects for Children (Dover Children's Activity Books)
by Jerome E. Leavitt

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Book Summary Information

Author: Jerome E. Leavitt
Brand: Dover Publications
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1986-04-01
ISBN: 0486250571
Number of pages: 96
Publisher: Dover Publications

Book Reviews of Easy Carpentry Projects for Children (Dover Children's Activity Books)

Book Review: Old book, old feel, old toys, old tools
Summary: 4 Stars

I like the Dover books, which generally re-print older books on decent-enough paper for a low price. This book is no exception; it's an old-fashioned book that was originally published in the 1950s.

The projects all involve hand tools instead of power tools, although the modern equivalent (with appropriate supervision) could be substituted. I generally like the older tools, although they're slower and require more actual skill to use. Your junior woodworker should know how to read and have some basic familiarity with the tools (or some scrap lumber handy to figure out how to use them). Ideally, s/he would also have some basic familiarity with some of the concepts of woodworking, like the fact that you spend more time with the sandpaper than with the saw.

With a child old enough to figure out most of the directions on his/her own, I think this would work best for what the child development people call "parallel play:" your junior woodworker works independently on his (or her) project, and you work independently on your own unrelated project -- but in the same room or area. This approach allows independence and encourages problem-solving, while still letting you keep a carefully peeled eye to head off disasters (ideally without the child noticing how closely you're watching).

The major downside for the younger kids is that the there's nothing about woodworking that lends itself to instant success (or commercially slick achievements on a first try). Persistence, patience and a decent attention span are necessary for the completion of projects.

Here's the list of fifteen projects in this inexpensive book:

sailboat
bird feeder
hot dish coaster
steamboat
toy sled
tie rack
book rack
table lamp
clock shelf
candlesticks
towel holder
cart
birdhouse for a wren
shoeshine kit
flower box

To be honest, these projects may or may not interest your youngster, and unfortunately our media generation may not consider these projects exciting enough or impressive enough to justify all the time and energy they require. (Then they'll complain that everything these days is mass-produced plastic.)

As with all craft-y projects, you should consider what you could do with it when you're done. If the answer is "can't do anything with any of these," then perhaps you should look for a different book.

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Summary of Easy Carpentry Projects for Children (Dover Children's Activity Books)

This unique woodworking primer teaches boys and girls age 7 and up basic carpentry skills through easy-to-make projects: bird feeder, sailboat, tie rack, flower box , and 11 more. Young carpenters will beam with pride at having constructed useful objects to keep or give as gifts. Over 100 black-and-white illustrations.

Crafts & Hobbies Books

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