Carving and age!

[Tom-H]

Here we are on another thread talking about "at what age does one quit carving". I think the answers are pretty much in agreement.....YOU DON'T.
If you enjoy it do it!

The other question that begs to be answered, is at what age should one start carving? I did not start carving until late in age, as is the case of many. In fact, I think most carving clubs have an aging membership. Folks keep putting up barriers to young folks learning to carve. Clubs meet in the day time, clubs have stopped teaching carving to kids, cub scouts and boy scouts don't teach carving anymore, senior centers (where lots of carvers are meeting) won't let younger folks in. Knives are considered weapons, and if a person is found to have one on them in "weapon free zones" all kinds of problems may surface.

Instead of putting up barriers to younger folks learning to carve, we need to be expanding our efforts to getting them involved. Maybe we need to start thinking "outside the box".

I think folks need hobbies more than ever now, and wood carving can offer so much. So how do we get young folks more involved???

Tom H

[SeaLeveler]

I agree on getting youngsters carving.My daughter will carve once in a while but she has so many things competing for her time.School,homework,boys,phone,internet,clarinet, 4H shooting team,archery,bicycle and a bunch I forgot.No wonder it's hard to get youngans carving.Tony

[squbrigg]

Never too young to start them carving. I began my granddaughter with soap at age 5. Now the results were predictable, but she sure had fun. She still carves soap now, at age 8 and is getting the hang of it. You can now tell a turtle from a duck.

For wood, I'd say 10 is about the minimum age. They need the strength and dexterity in their hands, and much younger than that, it just isn't there. I find 12 to be the best time to start them, more mature and will concentrate longer.

It's a lot of fun teaching them.

Bob

[telecarver]

I have taught kids through Arts in the Schools program as well as my own kids. I have also taught kids in two different Waldorf inspired charter schools where wood working and carving is a regular part of the curriculum. From my experience, you can expose kids at an earlier age but around seven is when they develop the necessary motor skills to be able to begin to have some control over what they are carving. At seven, they still need one on one supervision to prevent accidents. I haven't had any serious injuries but have had one girl who needed four stitches and several kids with nicked fingers. I think that around ten is the minimum age for teaching in groups up to five. I wouldn't recommend more than five kids per trained adult before high school age. Even at that ratio, there will be certain kids that act out and can cause injury to themselves or others. I'm normally pretty laid back but when I teach kids carving, I have a no tolerance policy. If they do something that endangers themselves or others, they gone from the class. I make that very clear when I teach them safety.

As for how old, I don't intend to quit until they pry my mallet from my cold dead fingers.

[Kadiddle]

Our club of about 30 +,- has a very good mix of male/female,young/old members. All carve. The oldest I think is 83,started with his grandpa as a young boy. The man is such a valueble,helpfull member ,he makes everything look easy and doable. Our youngest lad is around 9 and is with his dad,older brother,& great uncle. Wow, thats 3 generations.They travel 40 miles to our meetings. We do work hard at retaining our membership as well as bringing in new carvers. The door is open, come check us out, if you like it, join, if not, I hope you enjoyed the visit. Thats what I tell em.
Carve On,ya all come back now,
Kadiddle

[Lynn O. Doughty]

The reason it's so hard to get youngsters interested in carving, or in anything most of us older folks relate to, is that the times have changed. No doubt a lot of us were first exposed to carving by joining a Scout program. I remember that every issue of Boys Life magazine used to have a column titled Slide of the Month. The new Boys Life no longer has that. When I was growing up almost every boy I knew had a pocket knife and most knew how to use it. Well that has certainly changed. Get within a mile of a school these days with anything resembling a pointed or sharp instrument and ....well, I think we all know what happens. My oldest grandson just recently joined Scouts and I gave him a Scout knife. As his Dad was also a Scout he was comfortable with him having it. Unfortunately, that knife probably makes an appearance only at the weekly Scout meeting and at the occasional campouts. Otherwise it's left in a drawer being too dangerous for him to carry in public.

I really think this is why woodcarving seems to be in decline. The older we get the fewer there are that feel comfortable with sharp things or who remember how things used to be. I remember playing mumbly-peg at recess but can imagine what would happen if someone was caught doing that these days. No, although I hate to say it I think the golden days of our type of woodcarving have past. Sure there will always be woodcarvers, woodcarving groups and woodcarving shows but there won't be as many as there once was and as the years go by there will be even fewer still.

I told my 94 year old Mother the other day that I sure am glad I grew up when I did the way I did. I really pity the youngsters today that they will never experience the things I was exposed to growing up. The really unfortunate thing is that most of them don't even want to experience such things. If approached I'll give all the encouragement I can to interest anyone of any age in woodcarving but as my time grows shorter with each day the onus is on them to seek such help.

[Tom-H]

Yep Lynn, you're right. I'm glad too. I'll bet if someone invented one of those hand held things (Wii or some such thing) that simulated the act of wood carving, the kids might try it out. Then in about 1/2 a generation they can all say gee remember when they carved wood with a knife. Don't laugh! it can happen. Several months ago I stumbled across a site that featured a lady who made virtual quilts. I didn't read the whole thing and missed the parts that said she made the quilts on her computer. I just saw these great looking quilts. Now I find out that they actually have judged virtual quilt shows. How about a virtual carving show? Now would that be "hand carved" or machine carved.....I still have a scar from a pocket knife that I carried in a pocket on the side of my boot. Happened at school too.

Tom H

[BRIAN D]

When going to a Dr. appointment or waiting for the wife at one of hers, I get in to a little carving. Ever mind full of "SOCIETY TODAY", but believe it or not, it seems well received. Gets interest & discussion & sometimes even gets our Carving Club promoted.
If kids come to look, I make a point of trying to inform and answer questions. Our craft is alot of different things, to different ages, what ever they may be.

[Claude]

Lynn said it well.

I grew up with a Scout knife in my pocket from the age of around 6 or 7 - can't remember not having one. I grew up on a farm in Oregon, and a pocket knife was a tool that we used to keep the farm going. Unfortunately, in today's world the lawyers, unions, politicians, etc., have all conspired to pronounce any knife as a weapon. My two sons both made Eagle Scout and both have an inscribed Buck Knife because of it. Both are in construction today, and both have pocket knives because they need them in their work.

I'm working, slowly - because they're living at a distance from me, with a couple of children to teach them carving. I visited one a couple of weeks ago, and in an hour showed him how to carve the five minute wizard. He (9 years old) was surprised he could do it, and his parents were equally surprised. All it took was an hour, a couple pieces of wood, and the willingness to explain and demonstrate...

Claude

[aulddiy]

I live at the other side of the Pond, that maybe makes it different. Most of our wood is imported and the price reflects throughout. I potentionally break the law every time I go out the gate, I have always carried a knife of some description and refuse to change.
Non of these help to project carving in a good light.
I fell into carving at 67 I needed to carve a life boat for a model I was building, then I fell into it. This group being the main source of help. I had never seen anyone carve.
That says its not popular here. Kids want to do what other kids are doing.

I'd agree with other oldies who say theirs were a better time to be young even though my first four years were the years of WWII. Poverty and hardship continued here for a long time .