The crew constructing this 1,026-sq.-ft. ready-to-move bungalow is just like any other, judging from the hardhat-covered heads ducking in and out, the careful measurements and high-quality workmanship.
That is, until the buzzer rings signalling the end of class.
“For an industrial arts program its pretty unique,” said Donald Nikkel, during a brief pause in the work.
Nikkel — who teaches Grades 9 to 12 at Lundar School — has moved far beyond the usual shop class projects of bird feeders and bookshelves. Instead of building a bunch of little boxes, he put his students to work as a team building one big one.
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“The idea came from what carpenters do. Basically we build boxes… we build some small boxes like birdhouses, tool boxes, and we can build some larger boxes as well,” he said. The decision to build an entire house followed the success of previous industrial arts projects at Lundar School, projects like sheds and a timber-frame outdoor classroom.
“For the students — out here especially, where we have a lot of students who come from farms, or have parents who work in the trades. For them to get involved in a project like this, they see that it is going to be relevant to their lives. They say, ‘You know what, what I’m learning today, I’m going to be using tomorrow.’”
It’s also exposing students like Cole Wickenden to possible career opportunities.
“I’m keeping my options open, but plumbing looks pretty interesting,” said the 18-year-old Grade 12 student.
And even if he doesn’t enter the trades, Wickenden believes the skills he’s learned will serve him well.
“It will help me a lot. If I buy a house I can do things by myself without paying for someone to do it,” he said. “It’s been a great experience, you learn a lot of new things. I always thought that in industrial arts you’d be sitting inside a classroom, building a tool box or something like that, but we actually get to build a house. So it’s very good.”
Princess Swan, 16, doesn’t know exactly how the skills she’s learning will fit into the rest of her life, but she is having a lot of fun learning them.
“I just thought I’d try something new, so I took the class,” said the Grade 10 student. “But I like it, it’s really neat to work on the house and it’s my first time doing this kind of thing.”
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- Teacher Donald Nikkel gives direction to Kyle Kostyshyn (l) and Austin Nikkel.
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- Austin Nikkel cuts siding for a ready-to-move house being built at Lundar School. The three-bedroom home will be auctioned off on June 16.
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- Princess Swan helps put siding on a ready-to-move house at Lundar School.
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- A student at Lundar School has a laugh while working on a ready-to-move house.
And it’s not just any house.
“We thought, we don’t really want to just build a house to basic, minimum industry standards, we want to do something more than that,” said Nikkel, who built his own timber-frame home after returning to the community a few years ago. “So we’ve really focused on teaching students, not just how to build a house, but how to build a house that is going to be energy efficient and uses products that are a little out of the ordinary, but are a lot more environmentally sustainable.”
And it’s an idea that’s garnered a lot of recognition. Earlier this year, Nikkel was recognized with the Provincial Teaching Excellence Award, but he said it’s the support of the school administration along with that of the Lakeshore School Division that makes large-scale projects like this possible.
Of course the real accolades come from Nikkel’s students.
“Oh, he’s a great teacher,” said Wickenden, smiling. “He makes sure we have good teamwork and that we get everything done that we need to get done.”
Now nearly complete, the three-bedroom, ready-to-move home will be auctioned off at 5 p.m. on June 16 with a reserve bid of $47,000 to cover the cost of materials, which Nikkel noted were kindly provided up front by McMunn & Yates of Eriksdale. If the home is sold for more than the cost of materials, the extra cash will go back into the next project at the school.
“The whole project has been really rewarding,” said Nikkel, adding he’s not sure what the students will tackle next year.
