Woodworking for Kids?

[jessrlee]

So... Next week is our construction theme week. I plan to have the kids make craft stick houses, gumdrop structures, and moon sand. Today I got a wild hair and decided we would set up a woodworking area. I might just order bird houses for them to put together from oriental trading. But I thought I would see if anyone had any better (cheaper?) ideas?

[Leanna]

To me the purpose of woodworking with the kids is for them to learn how to use the tools properly, rather than "making" something, KWIM? Mine will happily hammer nails into an old stump or block of wood, wood gluing structures with scraps of wood (free if there is a woodshop near you), sawing branches, screwing screws into a woodblock, etc.

[itlw8]

To me the purpose of woodworking with the kids is for them to learn how to use the tools properly, rather than "making" something, KWIM? Mine will happily hammer nails into an old stump or block of wood, wood gluing structures with scraps of wood (free if there is a woodshop near you), sawing branches, screwing screws into a woodblock, etc.

I agree the little can hammer golf tees into Styrofoam. I have an old hand drill the kids love to turn the handle and make a hole. one on one supervision but they can learn to use real tools.

[Unregistered]

It may not help for this week, but Home Depot does a small FREE kids workshop every month on the first Sat. Simple little storage boxes, frames, flower pots or birdhouses. And the favorite part is painting the project. Plus their own little orange apron to take home.

[MarinaVanessa]

I do this occasionally (a woodworking center). I have a couple of small child size tools (hammers, hand powered drill, big nails, big nuts and bolts, adjustible wrenches and some glue. My DH cuts up some soft wood for me and the kids have at it. They glue the wood, drill holes in the wood, nail nails into the wood etc. I do it with the group and CLOSE supervision and they love it. Even the 2yos. The tools are all real tools just the smaller versions of it. Once we clean up the real tools we also have a cute little workbench that's made of metal and wood (purchased at Lowe's) and play tools. These aren't dangerous and get left out all week.

[youretooloud]

It's been a while, and tree stumps are hard to come by around here, but we would get a large tree stump (not too big to move around) and i'd hammer some nails into it, then the kids could finish hammering them down the rest of the way. When all were hammered in, i'd hammer some more in.

We got those small hammers for kids from the hardware store. The hammers were inexpensive, but the tree stump wasn't cheap. (it did last over a year though)

[countrymom]

It may not help for this week, but Home Depot does a small FREE kids workshop every month on the first Sat. Simple little storage boxes, frames, flower pots or birdhouses. And the favorite part is painting the project. Plus their own little orange apron to take home.

and LOWES does it too. I have alot of projects here. Depending on your kids, last week I built the bird houses and the kids painted them. They loved them.

[MarinaVanessa]

and LOWES does it too. I have alot of projects here. Depending on your kids, last week I built the bird houses and the kids painted them. They loved them.

I was wondering about this ... when I worked there many years ago they had the "Kid Clinics" for free about twice a month but have since then stopped doing them at my local stores. I'm not sure if Home Depot still does them or not since I rarely go there because it's farther. At Lowe's in my city they now sell you these little kits that you take home to do there. I miss those little workshops, my kids loved them. I still have several aprons and old kits that were given to me when they stopped doing the clinics but I'll be sad when they run out.