As I gear up for summer program, I will be taking a little time to reflect on my past year. My bosses at work have kept me on as a teacher, although I smell the terrifying and exciting smell of change in the air. On May 22nd, my students (and I) participated in the 2011Continue reading “(School) Year in Review: Art Car 2011”
Tag Archives: make
This Week in the Shop: A Granite Trestle Table (for Grillin’)
There’s a saying in electronic/maker/hacker circles. Sometimes, you just need enough junk before you can start doing cool stuff. You need a “critical mass” of stuff. This trestle table came together because of a “critical mass” of junk. The pressure treated base was scrap pieces from a variety of sources (work, my own projects, etc)Continue reading “This Week in the Shop: A Granite Trestle Table (for Grillin’)”
Teacher Tip: Use Pilot Holes for Hammering!
When installing finishing brads and nails, I usually chuck the nail into the bit and punch a hole through the lumber. This results in a minimal hole (the length of the nail minus the depth of my drill’s chuck jaws) which prevents most splitting. I recently “discovered” a secret – the deeper the pilot holeContinue reading “Teacher Tip: Use Pilot Holes for Hammering!”
This Week in the Shop: A Bed Frame
UPDATE: You can pick up PDF plans for this project at http://www.woodshopcowboy.com. More plans coming soon! A little over five weeks ago, a plumbing issue at my residence caused a rather large flood. Since then, my family and I have been staying with relatives. The workshop has been closed for personal projects until further notice.Continue reading “This Week in the Shop: A Bed Frame”
This Week in the Classroom: The 2×4 Shaving Horse
In preparation for a walkin’ cane project, I built a dirty looking 2×4 shaving horse. It ain’t named Trigger, though I might name it Jimmy Stewart. Whenever I think of the description “long face”, I think of Jimmy Stewart. I’ll walk you through my build after the jump…
This Week in the Shop: Refurbish A Children’s Bike
The 16″ childrens’ bike project has cleared my outbox. I’m busy in reflection mode with the students, examining all the different parts of our work for ways to improve the product, teaching and quality next time. I thought the bike itself came out well: If you’ve followed the blog over the past two months, thenContinue reading “This Week in the Shop: Refurbish A Children’s Bike”
This Week In the Classroom: Quadracycle In Progress & DIY Wood Bongo Drums
It’s that time of week again – I’ve had some personal living arrangements wetness and have been living out of a dufflebag and a smile. Reminds me of college, but at that time I didn’t have two in diapers… At the home workshop, I’ve been banging away. So, in one project, my segmented tube experimentsContinue reading “This Week In the Classroom: Quadracycle In Progress & DIY Wood Bongo Drums”
This Week in the Classroom: SNOW DAY!
It’s going to be a snow day in Houston! we canceled school two days early…. The last big piece of work I’ll do this week: I can’t really explain this one. Context is nothing when you have a big cow sculpture hanging out the back of your truck. It’s like trying to explain missing homeworkContinue reading “This Week in the Classroom: SNOW DAY!”
This Week in the Classroom: Squiggle ‘Bots
Here’s a line on what pre-school should be – I actually thought I invented this project a few years ago when I worked with primary school-age kids in VA. Obviously, I did not – it’s just rumblin’ around out there in the knowledge sphere. Teacher Tom goes into some of the skills those little guysContinue reading “This Week in the Classroom: Squiggle ‘Bots”
WSC Designs 