My son, 11, has knapped off and on for a several years. All my kids have attended knap-ins since they popped out of their mom, but knap-ins aren't always the best place for them to learn: kids require close supervision and there are too many distractions at knap-ins. He wears safety glasses, but no gloves. The only cuts have been very minor, and there's a good life lesson in every little cut. I believe that gloves are far more a hindrance than a help. Supervision and well-placed advice is the key. After all, he's only removing thumbnail-sized flakes, not spalling a 100 pound boulder of obsidian.