For the past 12 years, eighth-graders at Hutchinson Middle School have shared something of a rite of passage in their one-trimester wood shop class.
Every student builds a bench to show off the fundamentals they've learned, and many add their own artistic flair with personalized touches. Students select their own material such as a rustic cherry wood with more knots, or walnut with only minor embellishments to preserve a natural look. Others add quotes or similar sentimental details.
But when Gov. Tim Walz announced schools would close until at least May 4 — if not longer — to help reduce the spread of COVID-19, it seemed like there might be a break in the tradition.
"Many students felt cheated out of building their bench," said Rich Buchholz, eighth-grade tech education teacher.
So he came up with a plan and brought it to principal Brenda Vatthauer. Proposed was the in-house construction of all the parts students would need to build their own benches at home. The parts would also include a kit of additional materials such as drill bits, screws, lid supports, sandpaper, paper drilling templates and guide blocks. The kits were envisioned as a way students could tackle the project at home regardless of their available tools or background knowledge. A cordless drill would make the process much easier at home, but a student could get by with the proper screwdriver.
Buchholz hoped the approach could allow students to maintain some degree of normalcy, even if it didn't allow for as much flexibility.
"I was really excited about what he was sharing," Vatthauer said. "We worry about kids sitting in front of a screen all day. We don't want that."
As schools deliver "distance learning" to students, much of it involves the use of digital devices.
"With this being a hands-on project, they are not sitting in front of a screen," Vatthauer said. "It's something they can do and be independent, as well as work with the family. That's the exciting part."
The wood was ordered the next day and then the real work began. All told, Buchholz needed to make kits for 69 students in the class this trimester, but he opted to create 70 so that he could have one to demonstrate. That meant he needed 1,540 parts, and then he had to put in work on sub-assemblies students might not be able to reasonably tackle at home.
It was more than Buchholz could have done alone. Luckily, Hutchinson Middle School paraprofessionals Martine Fortin, Karla McGraw, Melanie Jenum, Becky Albrecht and Kelsey Smith — along with a team that came over from Park Elementary — were ready to pitch in. The work took place over four days.
"This would have never happened without the paras," Buchholz said. He also thanked administration for backing his plan, and parents for their aid at home.
With the parts ready and the sub-assembly finished, Buchholz gathered the additional materials needed and on Wednesday morning this past week, he was outside with Fortin to load the kits into vehicles as parents swung by for pickup.
The work doesn't stop there. Students and their families will be at home building the benches, and questions are likely to pop up. That's why Buchholz started work on instructional, step-by-step videos for various aspects of the bench construction, which are being uploaded to Google Classroom.
"Kids can watch and rewatch," Vatthauer said, noting that there are also written instructions.
The third-trimester students were not able to select their own hardwood due to the difficulty of collecting requests and making orders in a timely manner. But all lumber for the benches is a select grade of pine, which means it is clear with few knots. Buchholz is working on the logistics of placing wood burners in the hands of students at home to allow them to add a more personalized touch.
In the meantime, those in need of pointers can reach out to Buchholz, as teachers are keeping office hours. One option available is for students to live stream their project to him, and he can respond in kind.
"They can show me if they are having a problem," he said.
"When I met with him, he talked to me about all of that," Vatthauer said. "He said, 'I can stand here, I can put the camera up here and show that particular kid that particular part ... and I can show them live.'"
