Teaching Cub Scouts to Sharpen Knives

T

T Abell

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Sep 25, 2018
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Hello all. New member here. Long time reader, first time poster.

I may be teaching a group of 8 year old cub scouts the second part of their "whittling chip" process in about a week. This will include how to safely handle and sharpen a knife.

The book says to show them how to use a whetstone and that is probably a good place to start. But what else should I teach them?

Personally I have a ton of crap I use to sharpen knives:

Probably 6 steels
Ceramic rod that looks like a steel (but is, you know, ceramic)
5-6 whet stones at least
Worksharp system
Three push sharpeners

And God only knows what else I've accumulated. I know to avoid the push sharpeners and the Worksharp for the kiddos, but should I teach them the steel or just the stone?

Keep in mind these are 8 year olds so I do need to keep it simple.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.
 
Mark the edge with a sharpie or other permanent marker, swipe a few times on your preferred sharpening media, then examine where the ink is removed, usually under magnification. Helps to tell if your angle is on or off.
 
Some basic safety stuff should be included, especially at that age. Although I think they're kinda young, back when I was involved in scouts we waited until they were in the 11-15 age bracket. After all, sharpening also takes a lot of patience. Maybe all the more reason to include safety aspects too.
 
Lodd said:
Some basic safety stuff should be included, especially at that age. Although I think they're kinda young, back when I was involved in scouts we waited until they were in the 11-15 age bracket. After all, sharpening also takes a lot of patience. Maybe all the more reason to include safety aspects too.
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I need to read through the leader's guide to see exactly what they are supposed to do. I do know sharpening is mentioned but it is mostly safe handling and what you are and are not allowed to do with the knife.

Even if they get their "whittling chip" they can only carry it at certain times.
 
I taught the class several times. Two of the big ones:

- The Safety Circle
- Cut away from yourself.

Too many years of putting band-aids on kids' thumbs because they tried cutting towards themselves and got bit.
 
T Abell said:
I need to read through the leader's guide to see exactly what they are supposed to do. I do know sharpening is mentioned but it is mostly safe handling and what you are and are not allowed to do with the knife.

Even if they get their "whittling chip" they can only carry it at certain times.
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Do read through the guide and follow it. At that age I would think sharpening is going to be way down the list as compared to safety, as it should be. My daughter started using knives in the kitchen a bit before that age. Basic safety instruction is a must, but cuts will still happen.
 
I think you are asking the right questions and are on the right track. I do not think they are too young to learn valuable skills like knife use/care/maintenance. Here are a few thoughts I hope are helpful.

1. Teach safety and proper handling first - "blood circle", always cut away from yourself & others, how to manipulate locking knives and keep slipjoints from closing on your fingers, NEVER carry their knife to school or an airport.
2. Show them the most basic method for maintaining a good edge so that they don't think sharpening is too difficult or expensive. For example use the cheapest, most readily available whetstone to sharpen, then hone the edge on a basic butcher's steel that their parents will likely have in the kitchen. Would it be cost-prohibitive to get each of them a small whetstone of their own? If I recall correctly Walmart and/or Ace Hardware sell very basic stones for less than $10.00 each.
3. I agree that the "sharpie method" is a great idea to help get the hang of using a whetstone. I wish I had heard about this idea long ago...
4. After they have a sharp knife start whittling with them or do some other cutting tasks to practice proper use. It might help to demonstrate what not to do by using a cheap knife to cut against tile, concrete, glass, metal, etc. then re-sharpen. That way they might make the connection between proper use and ease of maintenance.
5. They will all inevitably cut themselves. This could be a good opportunity to teach basic first-aid as well. At the very least it will help them build character.
 
When I did this for my first boy in scouts (he was 9 at the time) it really helped to start with safety, then move on to the basic idea of what you are doing when you sharpen a blade (scraping off metal). Then a practical demonstration focusing on consistent angles. I didn't use the sharpie trick, but i am certainly going to use it when my next boy gets to that age (in one or two years).

Don't worry about hair-popping or paper cut tests. Use a piece of wood to whittle on and show them before and after making a feather stick.
 
I would follow the approved guidelines first which are designed to be simple, easy to follow steps for young children. Once they get comfortable with the basics, then move on to more advanced items. But keep it simple to start and don't overthink it. The kids are 8 and get distracted easily.
 
I agree that the Safety circle, etc should be taught first, Also I would go buy a Norton India Stones to demo.. don’t know current retail on them but they have always been the most cost effective Stone I know of.. Coarse side & a fine side. Works great and big enough for the kids to learn on.————————————- I believe they are 8” x 2”... those little pocket sized stones are not what you teach a beginner on... Last, I would show the kids how to strop on Cardboard . Explain there is clay/stone in corrugated cardboard ... cut out a 18” long piece and put it on a board or table,, Park bench,,, Then show them trailing strokes with the spine leading .. after a few strokes you can show them the steel imbedded in the cardboard. Keep going.. I never use oil on a sharpening stone, I and others have found that Simple Green Soap in the pump bottle works far better.. just a couple of squirts and get her done! I give a few more squirts when I’m done & wipe off the grit with paper towels or an old rag of sorts...Stay Safe & have fun!! Good luck!!
 
+1. Whenever I struggle with a knife, I always go back to the sharpie. I still have a ton to learn but that generally gets me back working the right angle .

l1ranger said:
sharpie trick - this may be the single most valuable thing I ever learned about sharpening.
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l1ranger said:
sharpie trick - this may be the single most valuable thing I ever learned about sharpening.
Click to expand...

This.

Make sure they understand what a burr is, and why it needs to be established.
 
Quiet said:
I taught the class several times. Two of the big ones:

- The Safety Circle
- Cut away from yourself.

Too many years of putting band-aids on kids' thumbs because they tried cutting towards themselves and got bit.
Click to expand...
My teacher in electrical school use to tell us to keep a dull knife and always cut towards yourself, that way you won't cut me. He hated kid, Thank god for my Knife skill training in boy scouts
 
Boy he's lucky I wasn't your dad. He would have had an unpleasant meeting. Depending on how that went he might have had another one with a knuckle sandwich.
 
My experience helping teach my boy's den is to have a bunch of crappy dull knives to start, a couple of pull-through sharpeners and tell them to always work away from their hands and fingers. Don't even bother with benchstones, Sharpie or better quality knives.

Out of about 10 kids the best of them managed to not scrape the primary grind up too bad, most of them simply didn't have the motor skills to do anything better and none of them even remotely came close to sharpening anything. One kid managed to cut his finger - not bad but probably the best lesson of the night - you CAN cut yourself and you WILL if you are not careful.

Agree with many of the above sentiments that it more about safety and becoming familiar with using a knife. My boy at age 8 was using a knife in the kitchen for a couple of years but could not begin to use a bench stone effectively. The rest of the kids fared no better.
 
Lodd said:
Some basic safety stuff should be included, especially at that age. Although I think they're kinda young, back when I was involved in scouts we waited until they were in the 11-15 age bracket. After all, sharpening also takes a lot of patience. Maybe all the more reason to include safety aspects too.
Click to expand...
I agree with this age bracket (11–15) based on teaching sharpening to boys/girls and men /women ranging in age from 10–50. (None seemed ready as early as 10.) Even the more mature people can get frustrated.

They also need good hand-eye coordination, the ability to focus, and not injure themselves—all which is more difficult in a group.

It also helps if they have had experience with other hand tools and enough education to understand angles and lines.

Unless it’s a private lesson by the parent to the child, I would skip the sharpening lesson.
 
I wish BSA would move the Whittling Chip requirement from Bears (typically 9 year olds) to Arrow of Light Webelos (11 year olds) - the older kids are able to focus better and are less easily distracted, but it is a required Bear Adventure and the kids love the loop and shirt pocket patch. We show them a bench stone, and show them how to use it, but that is as far as we take sharpening. If this hasn't been mentioned consider the lipstick on the plastic knife exercise also, graphically shows them where they would be cut when mishandling a knife.

For the soap carving requirement we use plastic knives, stiff ones, if we let them use pocketkives I'd have a mess of cut fingers and blood everywhere. Spread a tarp or sheet and make'em sit on it, makes clean up easier.
 
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