West Coast Christian School

3-21-04

Hi,
Since the beginning of the school year we have assembled all the major components except the daggerboard trunk. I have a small shop now, but will have a larger one at the new school site. The frames in the photo are only set up temporarily, but the longitudinal members are level. All of the plywood and set-up lumber has been donated so far, but I will be buying some mahogany with shop fees since I've found it so easy to work with in a past project. Next year I plan to finish the hull and the rigging the following year. It has been very relaxing to balance my regular math and science classes with my "retreat" here in my shop, working with a few enthusiastic students. I think the greatest value to students has been the need to think in a logical sequence on a project that doesn't just fly together, but requires blueprint readings skills and actual (non-computer game) hand-eye coordination.
Thanks, Neal

P.S. One of the hardest things to let go of is my idea that everything has to be perfect! I spend more time saying "stop" than anything. They're great kids, but we came close to having a couple un-symmetrical frames - thankfully I could check everything before the glue set up too far. They have great fun and best of all the principal thinks it's a great project!