Children are little adventurers. Children are little researchers. Children are curious. Children want to discover new things. And in order for them to understand what’s going on in this colorful world, they have to be allowed to try things out. They should climb trees, sit in nettles, light candles and cut cucumbers. Of course, it’s not true that everything used to be better. But sometimes you can’t shake the feeling that little people are being trusted less and less. You could fall down from a tree. Clear. Candle wax on your fingers is painful. Correct. And nettle poison can cause itchy pustules. That is also true. It is one thing for parents to hold their protective hands over their offspring. Keeping the Steppkes away from anything that poses even the slightest danger is something else.
Even and straight knives are a perfect example of this. Many children are fascinated by the silver blades. They are often reluctant to spread their sandwiches, but carving around on wooden sticks with Grandpa’s pocket knives is all the more fun. But when the junior abuses the wood with the blade, many a mother gets gasping for breath and sweaty palms.
Grandpa’s Swiss army knife with bottle opener, scissors, Phillips head and 25 other more or less practical mini tools is certainly not the perfect introduction to the world of carving. But putting the knife on the blacklist per se is similarly questionable. Carving knives for children are a practical compromise.
The blade is naturally the most dangerous part of a knife. Carving knives for children are no exception. Unlike carving knives for adults, the blades for little carvers are shorter and the tip is rounded. Although they are unusable as a replacement fork when camping, the risk of injuring your hand while carving is significantly lower. Unintentionally folding carving knives is similarly dangerous. With this carving knife for children, an additional safety ring at the transition from the handle to the blade prevents this. Other manufacturers omit the folding function entirely. In this case, it is important that the knife is stored in a robust leather sheath and can therefore be safely transported in a backpack. Even if children’s carving knives are not sharpened to razor sharpness, safety should always be a priority. Carving and pocket knives for children are not toys.
The red pocket knives with the white cross are considered by outdoor fans worldwide to be a reliable partner on camping holidays or hiking. And the popular Swiss army knife is also available in a junior version. In addition to the rounded locking blade for small and large carving jobs, the Victorinox tool comes with seven other functions – including tweezers and a small wood saw for shortening thinner branches. Important: The blade of this knife is sharp and the release mechanism for folding it requires a bit of finesse. With a little practice, children aged eight and over should be able to handle it well and safely.
Classics are and remain simple sticks from the forest. Children can let off steam on them. The bark is removed, the tip is added and the perfect tool for the next stick bread event is ready. If the stick is carved yourself, the bread tastes twice as good. If you want to challenge your children artistically, you could try using cut wood from the craft department. These are round or angular blanks made of soft wood (for example linden) that can be freely worked with a carving knife and transformed into imaginative figures or sculptures. Children of primary school age usually have the motor skills and are able to concentrate on such a project. However, you should never work with carving knives unsupervised. Some manufacturers also offer pre-cut figures (e.g. animals), which the children can design and carve as they wish.
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