Have you ever heard about the FREE “construction” projects that kids can participate in at your local Home Depot or Lowe’s stores? I had caught wind of this FREE, did I say FREE program!?!? …and we finally had a chance to sign up and attend one of these workshops.
We made it a family affair and we signed up for a Lowe’s “Build and Grow” workshop to construct a race car! Personally, I was pretty excited for my boys to take part in this hands on building experience on site in the store. I was a little concerned if they would be too young to really embrace it, but I figured there was only one way to find out.
When we arrived, the boys were promptly given a work apron, the race car project kit and a small size hammer to use. Lowe’s also set up piles of sheet rock I believe, that we were able to use as work tables.
The instructions were very clear and easy to follow, so we got right to work. Of course they were super excited to have work tools just the right size for their little hands, you just have to make sure to closely supervise what they are hammering and where!
It all came together pretty quick. The kits had exactly what we needed inside and it was a very fun project we were able to assemble together.
Once we got our cars together, it was time to apply the stickers to make it a certified Lowe’s race car!
And then the boys wasted no time testing them out on the store floor! All in all, a great, positive experience. I would certainly recommend it to other families with small children. I’d say anywhere from 2-10 years old this is the perfect low (no) cost activity to do together and it doesn’t take much time. At the end of the session, the children receive a certificate of completion and a patch to take home when they return the borrowed tool.
Here are some other notes if you decide to take part…
- Space for Build and Grow is limited, and fills up fast…so sign up online to claim a spot
- You don’t have to do the project in store, you can show up and get the kit to take home
- Walk ups for Build and Grow are accepted if space is available or there are no shows
- Workshops typically take place monthly on select Saturday mornings at 10am