Best Woodworking Project for Kids

**Collaborative post**

Kids love to get involved in projects. If they have seen you do any type of woodworking projects, they might express an interest in doing their own projects. When it comes to teaching kids, it is essential that you carefully show them how to use the various tools and teach them proper safety and handling! 

Kids pick up pretty quickly with sound instruction but it’s still best to start off fairly simple when giving your kids woodworking projects. You can always build on and give them more challenging projects as they hone their skills. 

We’ve got some of the best woodworking projects for kids to share with you here! 

Be Prepared with the Right Tools

Before you get started, you might want to take inventory of your tools and figure out what tools you want to teach them first. If you have a little bit of everything, decide if you should start them on a band saw or a scroll saw. 

There are many similar decisions to make as well. Once you choose a project, you can easily determine what other tools you will need. You might even decide to choose a project based on the tools you have available or are most willing to teach kids to use. 

Now, take a look at these project options. 

Creative Boxes

Something that is simple and straightforward and yet always useful is boxes. This is a great beginner project for kids. You most need some wood and some wood glue as well as nails or screws. This basic project is the perfect opportunity to teach kids measuring, marking, and cutting practices. 

If you feel a simple box is just too basic, try adding some creative design to the box. You can teach them to use a scroll saw to make shapes and cutouts for the lid of the box. This project is perfect for learning the basics and getting started with handling woodworking tools. 

It’s a project that you really can’t go wrong with. You can get creative or you can keep it simple and the boxes will be something to be proud of. They can be used for decorative purposes or storage or they might even make great gifts as well. 

Checkers Game

Another great project for beginners that is incredibly simple is a checkers game. You just need a large dowel rod that your learner can cut into even pieces and a board that they can square and markup to make the board itself. 

If you really want to get creative, they can make the board two-sided and have a backgammon side as well. This gives them a dual purpose and they can use the same checker pieces for the backgammon game. 

This project is simple with not a lot of cutting but it’s fun and interactive. The creativity comes when they prepare the playing board with artwork and add their own colourful creation to the game pieces and the boards for play. 

Create a small bag that the game can easily be packed into and carried around or stored away. This is a great way to keep all of the pieces together. 

If you want to kick it up a notch, you can create a dual-sided playing board that you can open and put the checker pieces inside when the game is not in use. This is a simple addition to the board that gives your learner a chance to prove their skills as well. 

Bird House or Bird Feeder

A birdhouse is a great project for your beginner woodworker and it will give them something they can use for years to come. They can also make a bird feeder or birdhouse into a great gift for a loved one if they prefer. 

A bird feeder can be made in a traditional birdhouse style or you can make a cylindrical one with varying cutouts. The nice thing about a bird feeder or birdhouse is you can get as creative as you like. You get full creative license here. 

This project will teach things like cutting, measuring, putting together, and more. With a birdhouse or bird feeder, your learner will also need to cut holes or circles and add small pieces to make the item bird-friendly as well. 

Once they finish the woodworking aspect, they can paint and make the birdhouse or bird feeder more personal as well. Once you have built the feeder you could make some birdseed cakes – you can find our recipe here. 

Picture Frames

Picture frames are an awesome woodworking project for kids. It hones their measuring, squaring, and cutting talents and gives them creative license as well. Stick with a simple 8 x 10 frame that is just plain cuts or get fancy and add some scrollwork and design to the project as well. 

Picture frames are versatile and you can never have too many of them. You can make them any way you like them and you can use them as gifts as well. Now, there are even a lot of picture frame projects that aren’t even just for hanging pictures. 

Let your learner practise the basics while they make a variety of picture frame styles to keep or to share. 

Gumball Machine or Candy Dispenser

Ready to kick it up a notch? This final project we share is a fun one that every kid loves. What kid doesn’t want a gumball dispenser or a candy dispenser that they can refill with what they please when they please? 

This fun woodworking project for kids adds a Mason jar to hold the contents. Building the base is really pretty simple. Here, your woodworker will learn measurements, cutting, and piecing together. They will also need to be able to create and place the lever and make a circular cutout in the wood for the gum or candy to dispense. 

You can find patterns online to follow for this type of project. It’s simple but teaches several skills and it’s a fun project that they can use forever! 

Conclusion

Teaching woodworking to a kid is easy and fun! There are a lot of simple projects out there that you can start with and before you know it, your miniature woodworker will become skilled and able to take on more complicated projects as well.