page contents Google

HIGH SCHOOL CLASS FOR PLUMB, LEVEL, AND SQUARE

May 18, 2026 by 2 Comments

The high school class I regret not taking?
Shop. Woodworking. Construction.
Why the regret? I bought a table saw.
It’s piece of machinery people in their thirties and forties buy because there’s something missing in their life: They’ve never built anything.
The table saw is also famous for kick-backs that send a piece of lumber rocketing through the garage door, and a sharp blade that sends detached fingers bouncing off the wall.
I bought the saw from a man who had already fed it a finger tip, so I was good.
High school shop class, like the ones taught by Alan Wheeler in Redmond High School Construction Technology, put safety at the top of the list.
Which is where it belongs.
No one wants something they build to include the story of the missing fingers, or a wide scar gouged out by a carbide tipped saw blade.
I had a vague idea on the order of operations, but not the concepts hammered in by words like plumb, level, and square.
From Google AI:

 

Plumb:
A plumb line is a string with a heavy weight (called a plumb bob) attached to one end. When the string is held taut and the weight dangles freely, gravity pulls it to determine a perfectly straight, true vertical line.
  • Construction & Carpentry: Used to ensure walls, posts, and doorframes are perfectly vertical.
Level: 
  • A “level” is a versatile word that most commonly refers to a tool used to check if a surface is perfectly horizontal or vertical.
Square: 
The 3-4-5 Triangle Method
This method uses geometry to confirm or establish a true 90∘ angle for building foundations, decks, or large rooms.
  1. Mark the Start: Measure exactly 3 feet (or inches/cm for smaller projects) along one wall or baseline from your corner, and make a mark.
  2. Mark the Second Side: Measure exactly 4 feet along the perpendicular wall/line from that same starting corner and make a mark.
  3. Measure the Hypotenuse: Measure the diagonal distance directly between those two marks. If the corner is perfectly square, this diagonal distance will measure exactly 5 feet.
  4. Adjust: If the diagonal measurement is more or less than 5 feet, shift the walls until it reads exactly 5 feet.

Learning Something Useful For Life

So far my projects include milling down rough cut oak stickers used on rail car loads and making a four poster bed.
It collapsed and turned into three footstools.
I made a pair of shoji screens for a window we replaced that have been looking for a new use the past fifteen years.
Would I have been more productive if I had taken the high school class for plumb, level, and square?
Yes, and my bed wouldn’t have collapsed when I sat on it, and the second bed I built wouldn’t currently be a candidate for garbage can screen in the driveway.
You know it’s a class done right when it gets this recognition:
Redmond High School is honored to be recognized as a DEWALT Grow the Trades Grant recipient for its efforts to teach building trades and build shelters for their local unhoused residents.
Redmond High School was selected as one of 166 organizations that are providing greater accessibility and resources for trades training. Redmond High School will be using the tools to prepare their students for work in the trades and increasing their access to state of the art equipment.

 

Adding to the program accolades is taking the class to the Construction Industry Education Foundation Design Build Competition last week.

 

Learning Plumb, Level, and Square For Life

Traveling and meeting new people who do what you do is an educational moment on its own.
In my own high school days the wrestling team traveled for the usual dual meets and tournaments, then the real travel began.
One trip was driving in campers to Stillwater, Oklahoma and Oklahoma State University for a national tournament.
Another was a bus to Fort Collins, Colorado and Colorado State University for a national tournament.
If you do it often enough you get a sense of community from seeing some of the same people doing what you’re doing.
The last big trip was two vans going to Iowa City, Iowa and the University of Iowa for what? Another national tournament.
I thought every high school team traveled like mine. I was wrong.
Other teams wrestling season ended as soon as possible; with my team it never ended.
Alan Wheeler of Redmond High School reminds me of my old coach, ready to make a difference.
Others noticed his work.
Two Redmond teachers were honored Friday by being named this year’s Oregon Association for Career and Technical Education (ACTE) teachers of the year. The awards shine a light on two teachers whose impact on students can’t be measured by a report card.
Teaching is a puzzle of sorts, with every student requiring a unique set of motivators — a personalized approach to gaining trust and commitment.
Redmond High School construction technology teacher Alan Wheeler knows that well. The Marine Corps and Air Force veteran is perfectly suited to keep these young students in line and to set them free.

 

National Center For Construction Education and Research is on the job.

 

Road Trips With Lifetime Memories

SkillsUSA Oregon crowns state champions 
State Champions can become national champs.
The SkillsUSA Championships is the premier showcase of America’s most highly skilled career and technical education students. It’s also one of the largest hands-on workforce development events in the world.
Held in conjunction with SkillsUSA’s National Leadership & Skills Conference each June, this awe-inspiring event features more than 6,800 state champions from across the United States competing head-to-head in 115 skilled and leadership competitions.

 

Once you get the competition bug and the travel bug at the same time, you might want to be a world champion?
Get packed for WorldSkills Shanghai 2026.

 

The WorldSkills Competition is the gold standard of skills excellence. It is an important platform for WorldSkills members to showcase vocational skills.
The competition is held every two years, with WorldSkills Shanghai 2026 being the 48th competition. The achievements of a country or region in the WorldSkills Competition often reflect its economic and technological strengths, as well as its skill development level.
Developed countries, especially manufacturing powerhouses, attach great importance to the WorldSkills Competition, and the event receives strong support from governments and significant attention from citizens.

 

PS:

A conversation with Alan Wheeler included the physical nature of working in the trades.
You have to be strong to start, then ready for the pain of getting in shape to do the work.

 

PSS:

The next time you hire a contractor ask them about their high school trades classes.
Send them links to the competitions listed here.
You may inspire them to look into their local school.
Education becomes a magic carpet of knowledge, but you need to hop on.

 

Filed Under: What's Up Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
About David Gillaspie

I'm the writer here. How do you like it so far?

Comments

  1. Alan says
    May 18, 2026 at 8:22 pm

    I just spoke to a guy on my evening walk who is a diesel mechanic. He attended a two year college to “get a job.” He explained how nobody cared about his degree now but he needed it to hired as a mechanic.

    He tried apprenticeship in Sheetmetal for HVAC and thought bending metal into duct work might be for him? Turns out mechanics was more his speed and with his associates degree from Linn-Benton Community College, it seemed like a way to find a job, although he says he is not a proponent of high education because nobody cares about his associates degree- it’s the 20 years of mechanic experience that want to know about.

    Turns out, it got him a job at Ford and set him on a path that he firmly believes was only due to his work ethic that got him where he is today. I think people who have the paper often minimize its right passage. It provides people who earned it with a door into a position that still has to earned a reputation of being a professional.

    I often joke that I have been educated well beyond my intelligence or maybe it’s just enough time sitting on my butt and listening to teachers – is all that separates those with degrees and those without.

    Technical education differs in academia in that you have to perform physical tasks that AI or those who lack skill cannot replace. I would argue that good education regardless of pathway should include practical application of all new learning.

    What better way to reinforce what is important than showing students what they can do with new knowledge and skills! Sometimes a degree just means you cared enough to stick with something long enough to show you care about yourself and your future to invest and stick it out?

    For people in high stakes and standards it is something that can be taken away. doctors, police, attorney, teachers, can have certificates and licenses revoked and it takes an education to get it, so essentially you have a degree that will become useless if you mess up!

    I would rather trust people who have something to lose than a person who can just move into the next job and say oh well…

    Reply
    • David Gillaspie says
      May 19, 2026 at 11:36 am

      This is worthy of its own blog post Al. Are you educated beyond your intelligence? If you are then you know the answer to this:

      One doctor’s diagnosis is such that he prescribes a whole shelf load of medication for the patient.

      Another doctor in the same field diagnoses the same patient and prescribes one medical remedy.

      Who do you trust?

      The first is a company man pushing product; the second is working for the best outcome.

      I’m a fan of working for the best outcome. Technical education works for the best outcome in everyone involved.

      At first we don’t know, then we know. Eventually.

      Reply

Speak Your Mind

*