Part IX in a series of exploring the book, "50 Dangerous Things (you should let your children do)."
As my readers know, my tween and I have been working our way through the hands-on discovery book entitled, "50 Dangerous Things (you should let your children do)" by Gever Tulley/Julie Spiegler. Complete article. My associate, LA Examiner Evelyn Block, recently interviewed Mr. Tulley. Article.
"50 Dangerous Things" is now available to all Madison area library patrons, due to some "brave" ordering by the Waunakee Public Library. (Update: There are currently 27 holds on the book. Place hold here.) In order to record your own field notes, just go ahead and buy the book now. It's on sale at Amazon here.
In this episode, two of the 50 dangerous things - whittling and throwing a spear - are combined into one activity.
#43 - Whittle. The first challenge was to locate an object to perform said whittling on. An old broom handle was discovered and placed into action. This activity taught the art of using a knife safely. As the book cautioned, "Woodcarving is like learning to play guitar - it takes time and requires persistence. Don't expect to be easy the first time you try."
After making several gouges in the wood she was attempting to shave, the tween agreed. "This is not easy!" she exclaimed. Following some frustrated attempts, the tween developed a steady whittling rhythm and a sharpened point began to take shape at the end of the wooden pole. Progress! The whittler noted that it was "sort of fun" after she got the hang of it.
When the spear was honed to a dangerous tip, we moved onto Dangerous Thing #8, designed to "activate your built-in brain wiring" by throwing the newly-constructed missile. It's not as easy as one might think.
Important things learned about spear throwing:
- Find the balance point of the spear prior to throwing
- Similar to Olympic javelin throwers' technique, running is a key element in successfully throwing a spear
- Practice, practice, practice is fundamental
- Side Note: There is great satisfaction when your spear is sharp enough that when it lands, it pierces the earth and remains vertical (reminded me of the good ole lawn darts)
Please enjoy photo slideshow and spear-throwing video below.
Are you interested in teaching your children to think outside of the bubble-wrapped box? Buy the book and live dangerously with your tweens! Stay tuned for further adventures...
Gever Tulley and Tinkering School.
Link to other dangerous articles here.
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