Year 7 Wood Work - Term1

Hi all. I’m Dexter from 7A.

Making a wooden spoon is one of the fundamental tasks that Year 7 students will learn in woodwork class. This process requires patience, attention to detail, and a steady hand. We started by creating an outline on the spoon using a template. This served as a guide for shaping and carving the wood. 

Marking is an essential step in woodworking, as it ensures that the final product will be precise and symmetrical. First the year 7’s needed to practise carving a concave area on a scrap piece of wood with a gouge chisel. When we finished the practise piece, we could start the wooden spoon. 

Students needed to select the appropriate tools, including a gouge chisel, wooden mallet, a pencil and sandpaper.

After we finished the concave carving for the head of the spoon, we then started using the coping saw to cut out the handle. Then we used the spoke shave to make the handle round. This is like a miniature plane. We also used the spoke shave to plane away a curve on the back of the spoon, creating a convex shape. 

We then started using a rough then smooth file to round off the handle. 

Next you can choose what design you would like on the end of the spoon, for example, a flower, a love heart, or a shape. But maybe some people would want to put a text on it, which you could also do. 

Finally, we used vegetable oil, covering the spoon with a paper towel, wiping off the excess with more dry paper towel.  This completed the process of production, unless we wanted to engrave or burn a design using a Piro Pen or Dremel engraver.

By mastering these skills, students will develop their ability to plan and execute woodworking projects with precision and accuracy. Marking a wooden spoon is just one of the many skills that students will learn in Year 7 woodwork, but it is a crucial foundation for their future studies in this field. 

I like that DMT wood has challenged me. I have always worked at home and used chisels, hammers, screws, nails and a number of power tools such as the Dremel engraver and a drill. Hope you’ve enjoyed reading about my experience of making a wooden spoon. 

Written by Dexter Moylan 7A.