Revised Student Learning Guide (June 22)

You can download and print an up-to-date copy of the Student Learning Guide here.

This guide gives you a clear idea what to expect in the course, what prerequisites you must fulfill, what skills you will learn, how long it will take, how you will be assessed, and what resources you will use.

There are 4 activities associated with this program, click on the links below to download and print them.

Assignment 1 requires you to to demonstrate basic competencies with tools, blueprints and self-management, as well as to complete a project drawing. (10%)

Assignment 2 requires you to research the Alberta Building Code to find information relevant to your project, and to adjust your plans accordingly in consultation with your instructor. (15%)

Assignment 3 requires you to research types and components of stairs and to demonstrate understanding of them. (15%)

Assignment 4 requires you to complete a takeoff and cost analysis based on your drawing, and to build your stairs using these resources. (60%)

If you have no experience building stairs, or would like a refresher, here is a demo video that guides you step by step through the process of stair construction. This deck stair is an exemplar of what will be expected of you if you were to attempt a similar project, and will give you a clear idea of how the process works.

Please note: All documents are viewable in Google Docs, however formatting is not accurate unless you download them as a word document. Please do this before printing to assure you get a clear and correctly formatted document.

Student and Teacher Resources

The primary student resources for this course are as follows:

Carpentry and Building Construction (Textbook) contains all the component and layout information you will need.

The Alberta Building Code section 9 contains the code requirements you must meet.

Access to the carpentry shop or a jobsite as well as building materials must be arranged after you have completed a take-off of materials and a job-costing sheet.

The CON 3040 Demo Video on Vimeo.

The following websites:

the CTS Foundations of Residential Construction portal,

the CON 3040 page.

Any outside resources you find can be applied for your own understanding, in addition to these core resources, however, thorough understanding of what is supplied is enough to successfully complete this course.

Teacher resources and Blackline Masters include:

Blueprint Assignment Master

Blueprint Assignment Worksheet

Safe Use of Tools Assessment

Time Management Template

Components and terminology reference sheet

Alberta Building Code project check (incomplete)

Components of Stairs Worksheet (incomplete)

Final Stair Project Planning and Assessment Guide (incomplete)

Student Learning Guide

You can download a copy of the Student Learning Guide here.

This guide gives you a clear idea what to expect in the course, what prerequisites you must fulfill, what skills you will learn, how long it will take, how you will be assessed, and what resources you will use.

CTS Course Overview

This CTS Course Overview can be downloaded here.

The skills you will learn in CON 3040 are an introduction to stair building. They are directly applicable to many different possible jobs, including carpentry/construction, project manager, draftsman, civil engineer, architect, building inspector, homebuilder, shop teacher, college instructor, and are tangentially relevant to many more. These skills can be expanded to include dogleg, circular and winder stair construction, and transfer from woodframe construction directly to steel fabricated, masonry, and manufactured plastics.

Many of the occupations noted above might be part of an individual's career path. For example, a carpenter might move on to become a project manager for a construction company; might become a homebuilder as they progress in their career, then might return to school in middle age to become a teacher or an architect. Every step of this career path requires specific knowledge of stair construction, to differing degrees, in order to succeed.

The course is very flexible, in that the main project, building a straight run of stairs and railing, can be modified in collaboration between student and teacher, to fit the student's needs. The student might build a new front step for their home, or a set of steps leading to their deck. They might replace a set of steps on the local playground, or build a portable box step for their parent's motorhome. In any event, they will research the appropriate building code requirements, measure a project onsite or work from a blueprint, then complete their project.

Differentiated instruction falls within a limited range for this course, as basic competencies must be met as a prerequisite. Beyond that however, an IPP still applies, and if a student requires a scribe or reader during testing, those resources will be made available according to their IPP. Further, videos are broadly available online, and hands-on learning occurs if the student is working on a jobsite, or in the classroom while they build the project. Further, because a large portion of the project mark is given for self evaluation and improvement, students can be successful by addressing their difficulties after the project has been submitted.