Trades class teaches important life skills

In addition to core subjects like Math, Language Arts, Science and Social Studies, students at Hot Springs County High School are also learning hands on skills they can use outside the classroom through the Trades class.

Trades begins in the classroom, just long enough to go over the current goals for the day, but it's soon a rush to grab safety glasses and head to the shop for some work.

Teacher Britton Van Heule said the class is keeping plenty busy with projects, including a judges stand for the cutting competitions that begin this month. In the past, he said, there has been someone sitting in the back of a truck and the class wanted him to have something a bit nicer.

Students are also learning a variety of work in the school shop, currently framing walls, putting up drywall, and installing plumbing and electrical. Van Heule said they will tape and mud the joints, then finish the wall with drywall texture. From there they will paint and trim the wall as if it were just a regular wall.

"Once it's all done, painted and textured, and everything's perfect," Van Heule said, "we're going to smash some holes in it and teach them how to fix a drywall." Once the class is done with the wall, the students will demo the walls and use them as subfloors to learn how to lay tile linoleum and carpet. "They're going to do every type of flooring we can get our hands on. It's a really cool project for these kids and they're really engaged. It's fun to watch."

There are 36 students in Trades, 18 of which are working on the drywall project and the rest working in the ag shop with welding skills. Van Heule noted that while he is the only Trades teacher, Todd Weber teaches Woods two hours a day and is his paraeducator in the class. As for having an additional shop teacher, Van Heule noted the district has made efforts to hire another staff member.

Beyond the wall and flooring units, Van Heule said the students will be working on small gas engines and learn how to change oil and rotate tires among other skills. "Those kids are going to get everything from construction trades to welding trades to building. There are a couple projects around town. We're going to maybe build some steps for some different businesses. We might be helping at the fairgrounds with the new concession stand they're building. There's a lot they're doing. It's a real fun class."

Van Heule said they have been coming up with projects that are multifaceted and involve more than one skill so the students have to learn something new. "We really tried to build a class that wasn't any classroom time. We took a safety test, learned about welding and went to the shop the first week of school. We have a large number of kids right now that want hands on stuff and it's a good opportunity to get them some skills."

Though the regular Ag teacher, Van Heule said he's had to adapt in order to teach the Trades program. He further pointed out taking on the additional responsibility hasn't interfered with his Ag teaching and seems to be influencing students to get into agriculture.