It smells almost overwhelmingly of cut wood. The dull noise of a blade shaving through it is loud in one’s ears. Lined at the back are 16 meticulously crafted birdhouses.

These birdhouses are the product of more than a week’s worth of work from Woodshop students. The project began Monday, February 10th, and ended Thursday the 20th.

“We had requirements on the measurements and wood,” sophomore Gregory Cooper said. “We had to have a perch and a roof and it had to be colorful. But other than that, we could make it look how we wanted.”

The birdhouses were one in a series of projects centered around independent building.

“We had a couple before this,” Cooper said. “We made a cutting board as our first project. Then a pen as our second. That one took me a few tries but I finally got it. But this one wasn’t all that harder. It was like all our other projects.”

Woodshop itself is a unique class that allows for a different kind of challenge than many other classes.

“I’m taking Woodshop because I enjoy creating things,” Cooper said. “I want to be an engineer when I get older and I think this class will help.” 

Each completed project is a source of pride and the birdhouses are no exception.

“I feel good about my project because I love making things for fun,” Cooper said. “Or whenever I feel like making something.”