ENABLING ENVIRONMENTS COLLECTIONS Touch wood! Nicole Weinstein explores the benefits of working with wood, provides some tips on safety, cites the key resources needed and details where to go for more help oodwork is a pow- erful tool for devel- oping children’s creative and prob- lem-solving skills. Through trial and Werror, they develop the ability to think critically, while mastering a new skill that provides countless opportunities to express their limitless imagination. Artist educator and early years trainer Pete Moorhouse introduces pre-school children to woodwork in early years settings across the country, including Bristol-based St Werburgh’s Park Nursery School and Children’s Centre, where he is artist-in-residence. He says, ‘I’m pas- sionate about the depth of learning it inspires, encompassing creative and critical thinking, maths, scientific investigation, physical co-ordina- tion, language and vocabulary. It is also an activity that children greatly enjoy. For some, it is even the key that unlocks their excitement in learning.’ Moorhouse, ‘Woodwork is actually Above, below left and is a valuable skill for life. Many chil- MANAGING THE RISKS a low-risk activity when introduced right: children at St dren will need to use tools for work A lack of knowledge of woodwork and supervised correctly. In 12 years, Werburgh’s Park get or in the home and it is important to and how to use tools safely leave I have only had two children get tiny stuck in to various teach children the value of repairing many practitioners hesitant about surface cuts, more minor than regu- woodwork tasks and making, rather than consuming getting involved. However, says Mr lar playground scrapes. Woodwork Below: the 8oz and disposing. Children feel both allows children to experience risk Stubby Ball Pein valued and a sense of responsibility in a controlled situation, providing Hammer, and a when they are given the opportunity opportunities for making judgements Draper Pistol Grip to work with real tools. and learning to self-risk-assess. Hand Drill ‘One of the most remarked-upon CORE PROVISION observations from practitioners is the When deciding how to structure depth of children’s engagement. They woodwork in your setting – and often persist at challenging wood- whether or not to make it part of core working tasks for extended periods, offering – it is important for prac- so woodwork can be seen to help titioners to ask themselves, ‘Do we develop sustained concentration. want all the children to experience ‘There are two layers to their con- woodwork and the associated deep centration and focus – one with the learning and development?’ need to concentrate due to the nature Mr Moorhouse says, ‘I often hear of using tools, and secondly, as they teachers say that they want to offer are keen to construct there is deep- woodwork to their boys. But our level thinking and problem-solving experience has been that there is as to how best join and make their absolutely no gender bias towards desired project.’ woodwork – both boys and girls It is well worth overcoming any enjoy it equally, so I really believe apprehension, he believes. Beyond that all children should have access the early years curriculum, woodwork to woodwork.’ 26 NURSERY WORLD 19 SEPTEMBER-2 OCTOBER 2016 WWW.NURSERYWORLD.CO.UK Every setting has different con - l Wood being sawn or drilled straints. How woodwork is offered needs to be held firm so a sturdy depends on many factors such as workbench with a vice is ideal. MORE available space, staffing ratios and See Community Playthings’ INFORMATION the particular cohort of children. Basic Workbench, £340, or There are nurseries that make wood- Complete Workbench, £585, l Training from Pete work available every day, but have it at www.communityplaythings. Moorhouse (www. set up in a location where it can be co.uk. Also available is Cosy irresistible-learning. monitored easily. Other settings bring Direct’s Woodwork Bench, £229; co.uk, studio@ the equipment out on certain days. Woodwork Table Top Block, £60; petemoorhouse. Mr Moorhouse suggests teaching or the Workshop Shed, £395, co.uk) provides all children how to use a hammer, which is a woodwork station and hands-on guidance screwdriver, drill and saw and then tool storage in one – all available at on how to set up Cosy Direct’s Woodwork Table let them choose if and when they www.cosydirect.com. an area, which Top Block (above) and Short want to do woodwork. tools and wood Hammers (below) Hammers to buy and how to WOODWORK RESOURCES l Provide two 8oz Stubby Ball Pein introduce them l Cosy Direct stocks a range of A starter kit should include: ham - Hammers, which are perfectly safely. His book can hammers for different purposes. mers, screwdrivers, a saw, a hand drill suited to young children, and a be downloaded at: Try the set of three Short Hammers, and drill bits, workbench and lots of claw hammer for removing nails, www.community £4.95; the pack of ten Wooden nails and screws. available from www.amazon.co.uk. playthings.co.uk/ Hammers, £6.95; or the pack of l The Japanese nail puller (160mm) learning-library/ three Plastic Hammers, £7.95, Work surfaces is by far the best tool for removing training-resources/ which are useful for practising l An old table at child height makes nails: £16.60 from www.quality- woodwork-in-the- hammering. A Hammer and Nail a good work surface; alternatively, woodworking-tools.com/tools/Ice- early-years Complete Set, £34.95, is available cover a table with a sheet of wood. Bear-Japanese-Miscellany.html. from www.tts-group.co.uk Safety glasses JSP Junior Stealth 7000 safety specta- cles, £2.15 each for orders of ten and over, from www.rapidonline.com/ facilities/junior-laboratory-spec- tacles-72695 – also available from www.thesafetysupplycompany.co.uk. Saws A small Japanese saw is a great addi- tion and very easy for children to use, cutting on the back stroke. Japanese saws generally have teeth on both sides, but on the Ice Bear Japanese Small Dozuki Tenon Panel, ➤ CASE STUDY: ST WERBURGH’S PARK NURSERY SCHOOL, BRISTOL Children at St Werburgh’s Park children to woodwork, I talked He picked up two pieces of So, we worked out a plan to Nursery School in Bristol have the class through the safety balsa wood, examined them fasten the wings. When he access to woodwork as part aspects and showed them the and said they were going to finished it, he decided he didn’t of the setting’s core provision. tools, which we then tried out be the legs. He then put them want to keep it so he took it Class teacher Liberty Fletcher- in small groups of three. Now in the vice and chose another apart and put all the pieces Gardiner explains, ‘We have a children are free to access thin piece of wood. He said, back into their places and workbench with an integrated woodwork when they choose. “I’m going to make a dragon.” I moved on to make a dinosaur. vice and storage for tools, ‘It has been a huge success. watched him try to connect the ‘This extended level of wood and resources that we Children now work largely piece of wood to the legs with a concentration is not isolated share with the three other independently, but always with nail. It wasn’t working, so I asked to this child. All children, of nursery rooms. The workbench an adult on hand to talk through him to look at the depth of the both genders, participate in is usually outside with a table their ideas and problem-solve. wood and the size of the nail. woodwork with the same to the side of it, on which we One child, who spent a lot of He realised he needed a bigger levels of concentration. Their lay out the wood and other time alone, has come out of nail and when it worked he was levels of critical thinking and resources such as beads and himself. His language skills have really proud of himself. ability to manage their own corks. However, some children developed and he’s much more ‘He then chose some small risks have increased tenfold prefer to work indoors so we confident to try new things. pieces of wood for wings and due to working with wood, and move it between locations. ‘This week, he spent the tried to screw them in with a it’s built up their fine and gross ‘When I first introduced the morning working on a creation. screwdriver but it didn’t work. motor control.’ WWW.NURSERYWORLD.CO.UK 19 SEPTEMBER-2 OCTOBER 2016 NURSERY WORLD 27 ENABLING ENVIRONMENTS COLLECTIONS Community from £26.99 on www.amazon.co.uk, Playthings’ Complete the top edge is smooth. Workbench See also the Bahco Handsaw, £7.99, from www.amazon.co.uk. Drills and screwdrivers Hand drills and Draper Pistol Grip Hand Drills can be bought for £10- 15, along with Drill Bits (short stubby ones, 3-4mm), £5 from www.amazon. co.uk or Bristol Tools (mail order, tel: 0117 9247413). Cosy Direct sells Pistol Grip Drills for £9.99 and Brace Drills for £11.99. Also available are Screwdrivers, four pack, £2.99, and the Real Woodwork- ers Starter Kit, £27.99. Balsa wood INTRODUCING WOODWORK SAFELY Try the Balsa Cabin, balsacabin@ NW SHOW hotmail.com, tel: 01621 859711; Fred l Position your woodwork area l Avoid: hardwoods, which Aldous, [email protected], tel: in a space, indoors or outdoors, are difficult to hammer nails Pete Moorhouse will 0161 2364224; and Consortium, tel: that is free of distractions.