: What do you think about length, wood choice, kiln dried or not. Their average
: height is around 5'5" but they will certainly 'grow into the paddle'.

As you say, they can personalize their paddle. I think the only thing you want to standardize is that they get the relationship between their sholer width and the loom to be a good one. Overall length can be trimmed to fit later. You can start with 8 foot boards and cut off the length as necessary.

Start with a 2x4 and bandsaw away most of the excess wood, or start with a 1x4 and build up the center with pieces from a 1x2, or scraps, for a comfortable grip, with less wood removal later.

Choice of wood is up to you and the class. Cedar works easily iwht hand tools and power tools, while SPF (spruce, pine, fir) construction 2x4's are pretty cheap to obtain. They are a bit heavier, but if you are planning some combative techniques later on (Kendo ???) they might take a bit more abuse

I'm not sure if the natives decorated their paddles. You would have to check with an anthropologist for confirmation on this. the only padle decoratioon I'm familiar with is from Voyageurs painting maps on their paddles. This seems to still be a common thing for Scouts and others traveling in the boundary waters in Minnesota. At the end of the trip they can hang the paddle on the wall, and the map tells the story.

Who DOES get that boat when it is finished? It would bre nice to do one a year and build up a small fleet for use in PE classes or for semester break trips.

Southern Illinois Univ. does week-long canoe trip programs for middle school students throughout Illinois. Actually,m they do several of these through out the year. The people leading the trips are assisted by students in the college's recreation and outdoors ed. program, and they get credit for helping. My daughter went on one of these, traveling through small rivers in the Missouri Ozarks, and absolutely loved it.

Or, the next boat could be a rowing shell, and you could get the kids started on an Ivy League sport. Might be good if they put that on their applications to Harvard and Yale.

Just some thoughts.

PGJ
PGJ