From Fearful to Fearless
“Oh, no. I am not doing THAT!” This declaration came from Andre, a seventh grader at Mound Elementary during my heat gun demonstration. We were working on the next step of our LED clouds: heating and bending acrylic rods. I usually talk about safety first when demonstrating any tool and mention the dangers of this seemingly harmless “hair dryer.” The temperature on some of these heat guns can go up to 1800 degrees and you can burn yourself, but when using this tool properly, this will never be an issue.
After my demo I told the students to get into groups of two, grab a heat gun and some gloves, and get to work. Andre reluctantly gathered his partner and tools and slowly walked to his working area. Knowing his obvious fears, I went over to him first. As soon as we turned on the heat gun his inclination was to hold it as far away from his body as he could, but after further instruction and safety basics he was able to be more comfortable with the equipment. With a little coaxing and praise, he was off and running! He finished bending his acrylic rods and then began helping his fellow classmates, reminding them to be patient and safe.
I was so proud of him and how quickly he moved from a place of fear to being fearless. The next step in our project is soldering, and I know Andre will excel in that task, as well!
