Pahrump Students Build 250 Wooden Toys for Preschoolers

On December 11, 2025, students in Pahrump Valley High School Building Construction I and II finished a semester end project that yielded 250 handmade wooden pull toys for the preschool program at Mt. Charleston Elementary School. The effort, spanning weeks of cutting, sanding, assembling and painting, involved roughly 160 students and combined hands on shop work with written and Chromebook based assessments.

Each toy required four wheels, meaning the classes produced about 1,000 wheels in addition to the toy bodies. Students were given choices on their projects, either building individually unique items or collaborating on the pull toys in class. In a practical reuse effort, students repurposed leftover birdhouses into festive gingerbread style items which were sold to help recoup material costs.

The project illustrates several institutional strengths and constraints in local career technical education. It demonstrates the capacity of vocational classes to deliver applied learning at scale, while also revealing how programs rely on student led sales and repurposing to offset supply expenses. The Building Construction program is led by teacher Doug Nelson, in his first semester at Pahrump Valley High School after 27 years in Clark County, a transition that underscores teacher mobility and recruitment dynamics in regional school systems.

For families and residents, the immediate benefit is straightforward. The toys will be delivered to the Mt. Charleston preschool the following week, providing new play materials that are likely to bring direct joy to younger children and strengthen ties between the high school and neighborhood schools. For students, the project offered hands on practice of trade skills, teamwork experience and tangible outcomes that can support post graduation pathways in construction and related fields.

From a policy perspective, the undertaking raises questions about sustained funding for materials and the role of local schools in preparing students for the workforce. The reliance on student sales to recoup costs points to a gap that school districts and county officials could address through targeted support for career technical education. The project stands as a concrete example of how school programs can serve community needs while exposing areas where institutional investment could expand impact.