Keeping kids occupied is a continuous challenge. They have a natural curiosity from ages three or four, and they enjoy challenges and creating things. Getting kids involved in woodworking at an early age is a great way to keep them occupied and teach them a skill that will remain lifelong.
Unlike adult woodworking projects, you need to give the safety factor extra attention. It would help if you also considered the level of difficulty because small children do not have adults’ developed motor skills. In this post, we take a look at some of the best woodworking projects for kids that will give them a sense of achievement on completion.
Tips For Parents
Here are a few general and safety tips to help you introduce your kid to woodworking:
Introduction To Tools
It would help if you familiarized your kid to different types of tools and what each one does. You can get pre-assembled toolkits for kids on the market. Alternatively, you can put one together yourself. Ensure that your child’s toolbox contains child-sized tools that they can easily handle.
Creating A Work Area
Allocate a place for the projects. You can include your kid in staking out an area. It can be in the backyard, garage basement, or even a part of one of the house’s rooms. That way, your child will feel a sense of belonging to the workspace that you identify.
Safety First
Once your kid has a toolkit and you have identified a place to work, you need to make your child aware of safe practices. Follow the best practices given below:
- Adult Supervision: Always be present when your kid is handling tools.
- Protective Gear: Make your child aware of the importance of safety gear.
- Work Times: Inculcate the habit of following work times into the projects.
- Ventilation: Make your child aware of the importance of maintaining adequate ventilation while working, using a face mask, and keeping windows open.
Familiarization Process
Before the first project, let your child mess around with tools and scrap material with specific instructions. You can encourage them to be creative and use their imagination in this activity.
The Importance Of Being Positive
It would help if you adopted a positive attitude. Introduce concepts to the child in a way that makes them seem interesting but simple. But do encourage independence. Let them make mistakes. That is the best way of learning. Be there for your kid to explain an error, rectify it, and prevent it from happening in the future. And most of all, be appreciative of your child’s efforts.
10 Best Woodworking Projects for Kids
Finishing a woodworking project with your kid can be fun, entertaining, and rewarding. It allows you to spend some quality time bonding with your child over a challenging woodworking project.
In this selection of woodworking projects for kids, we bring you ones with different difficulty levels to suit various age groups. While some feature basic stuff like wood, glue, and paint, others involve using power tools, requiring adult supervision.
Spend a weekend afternoon over a suitable project with your kid and create some precious memories as you go along. Here are the ten best projects:
# 1: Wooden Spatula
You Will Need
- Narrow strip of thin, soft wood like balsa or pine
- Pencil
- Jig saw
- Set of files
- Sandpaper
- Food-safe oil to finish the wood (optional)
Method
Outline the spatula with a pencil. Cut the profile with the jig saw. Round off the edges with the files. Finally, use the sandpaper to smooth the surface. You can leave the wood as it is or apply a finish with food-safe oil.
# 2: Coasters
You Will Need
- Compass
- Flat sheet of hardwood (can be scrap off-cuts)
- Jig saw
- Files
- Sandpaper
- Oil paint
- Clear lacquer
- Paintbrushes
Method
Draw circles on the wood with the compass. Cut rounds with the jig saw. Smoothen the edges and both faces with the files and sandpaper. Use oil paint to paint designs or fun pictures. Once done, coat the painted surface and the reverse side with clear lacquer. Allow drying entirely before using it.
# 3: Cutting Board
You Will Need
- Wooden board
- Wood saw
- Bench vise
- Pencil
- Set square
- Files
- Sandpaper
Method
Using the set square, draw lines to trim the wood into a cutting board’s shape and size. Clamp the wood in the bench vise and cut along the lines. Using a file, round and smoothen the rough edges. Finally, smoothen all surfaces using sandpaper. You can apply a finish with food-safe oil.
# 4: Pencil Caddy
You Will Need
- 3 mm thick plywood sheet about 12” X 12”
- Pencil
- Wood saw
- Bench vise
- Sandpaper
- Wood glue
- Wood primer
- Oil Paints
- Paintbrushes
Method
Using the wood saw and bench vise, cut four plywood pieces into 3″ X 4″ rectangles after marking with the pencil. Cut one piece of plywood into a 3” X 3” square. Glue the four 3″ X 4″ inch pieces to make the pencil caddy’s vertical part. Wait for the glue to dry.
Now glue the structure onto the 3″ X 3″ plywood, which will be the base. Finally, use sandpaper to smoothen the structure. You can now decorate the pencil caddy using wood primer and oil paints.
# 5: Nail String Art
You Will Need
- Wooden board 1’ X 1’ or a similar size
- Nails
- Hammer
- Lengths of colored string
Method
Bang nails across the edges of the board, perpendicular to the surface. Take the colored string and start connecting it to the nails to form different patterns. Encourage your child to be imaginative in creating different designs.
#6: Tent
You Will Need
- 1” x 1.5” x 48” wood boards
- Canvas 3 yards
- Tape measure
- Hand or electric drill with a set of drill bits
- Scissors
- Needle and thread
Method
Drill 3/4” holes at the end of each board. Fold the canvas at either end of the breadth and stitch them to make pockets to accommodate the dowels. Slip the dowels into the canvas pockets. Insert the ends of two dowels into the holes in the wooden planks. Join the planks together and use the remaining dowel to create a tent.
# 7: Animal Bookends
You Will Need
- 6” X 4” wood – 2 pieces
- 3” X 6” wood – 2 pieces
- Large plastic or wooden toy animal
- Handsaw
- Paint
- Hot glue gun
- Hammer and nails
- Sandpaper and baby wipes/rag
Method
Make two L-shaped wood sections by nailing and gluing each set of boards together in a simple butt joint. Now, sand down the wood sections. Cut the plastic or wood toy in half. Stick either end of the cut toy onto each L-section. Once done, paint the entire structure.
# 8: Sailboat
You Will Need
- 2” x 4” wood scraps
- Wooden dowel 8” long
- Brightly-colored scrap cloth
- Hand drill or drill machine
- Drill bits
- Wood varnish
- Hot glue
Method
Cut and shape the wood into the shape of a sailboat hull. Drill a hole (but not a through-hole) at three-quarters towards the pointed end of the wood. The size of the hole should be such that you can slide fit the dowel into it vertically. Cut a triangular piece of cloth and stick it onto the dowel to make a sail. Now, the dowel is the mast. Dip the base of the mast in hot glue and insert it into the hole. Finally, apply some wood varnish to enhance the appearance of the wood.
# 9: Mason Bee House
You will need:
- Solid block of wood about 12” X 4” X 4”
- Scrap wood 6” x 6” x ¾” thick
- Hammer
- Nails
- Drill machine and 5/16” drill bit
- Heavy-duty hanger
Method
Drill 5/16” holes into the front side of the wood block across the breadth spaced at about 1” from each other all along one long face. The holes should be about 3 ½” deep. Nail the scrap wood onto one end of the wooden block. It forms the roof. Now, nail the heavy-duty hanger at the back of the solid block towards the top. Find a suitable sunny spot in the garden, hang up the bee house, and wait for the bees to come!
# 10: Wooden Planter
Source: healthyhandyman.com (https://healthyhandyman.com/woodworking-projects-for-kids-to-build/) (see Sno. 7)
You will need
- ½” thick wood pieces: 4” X 24” = 2 Nos.
- ½” thick wood pieces 6” X 4” = 2 Nos.
- ½” thick wood pieces 6” X 1” = 2 Nos. (for the legs)
- ½” thick wood piece 25” X 6” = 1 No. (for the bottom)
- Wood saw
- Planer
- Sandpaper
- Hammer
- Nails
Method
Cut the wooden pieces according to the above list. Nail the 4X24 and 6X4 pieces together to form a frame. Now nail on the 25X6 piece at the bottom. Nail on the legs by placing the 6X1 pieces on either side of the base, across the width. Use sandpaper to smoothen the surfaces. Voila! Your planter is ready! Fill with earth and add plants, seeds, or seedlings. Alternatively, you can add small plant pots inside it.
Conclusion
We hope that you found these ten best woodworking projects for kids useful. You can choose any one of them to introduce your child to the world of woodworking. As you work on these projects, you will find the entire experience extremely rewarding.
This way, you can progress into other more complicated projects, as you grow together. These ten projects will likely give you ideas for more exciting projects that you can share with your kids. Teaching a child to become a skilled woodworker is one of the best gifts that you can bestow upon them!
