50 Dangerous Things You Should Let Your Children Do

For the Geekling's 7th birthday we bought child-sized real tools. A drill, hammer, screwdrivers, clamps, jigsaw, safety goggles, tape measure, hand saw, etc. A few friends believed I had completely and totally lost my mind, I mean, who gives power tools to a 7 yr old?!?! I thought the risks were well worth the payoff. What better way to teach math, measurement, estimation, physics, and general competence than to allow him the freedom to explore, get dirty, and create?

We're adding in a pile of wood, plastic, metal scraps, and old appliances and electronics to take apart to understand how things work.

I can't wait to get started! I know next to nothing about building and engines, but we will be learning together.  This week we'll simply be playing as we learn to use the tools, then on to bird houses and dog houses. Of course the Geekling will be allowed to experiment with just hammering, drilling, and sawing to create whatever he likes to improve his skills. We are working on Pythagorean Theorem so it fits in perfectly with building! 

Art projects will be incredible when they are comprised of different types of wood, wire, pvc pipes, and sheets of metal! Just think of all of the incredible possibilities. This is what childhood should be!