Are you looking for a free and family-fun activity? One activity that we have been loving recently is attending the monthly Home Depot Workshops! It's a completely free event that Home Depot and Lowes put on during the first Saturday of every month. These projects can be age appropriate for 3-5-year-olds with adult supervision and older than 6+ can work on them independently with very little guidance. It doesn't matter which event you go to, you will have fun at any of them. Just sign up and try one with your family. Below I will share my 5 tips for Home Depot Kids Workshops.
We started trying these Home Depot workshops back in February of 2023 and have loved each one.
Home Depot offers a fun activity on the first Saturday of the month, typically from 9 am–noon at each location. Lowes offers similar activities in the middle of the month on Saturdays. Kiddos will learn basic skills (think hammering, gluing, etc) all while putting together a fun project. To see Home Depot's next 3 workshops they are offering see here. Below I will give you my tips and tricks to make this family outing successful!
5 Tips for Home Depot Kids Workshops
Tip #1 - Arrive Early
The early bird gets the worm, or in this case, the early bird gets a spot. These events are very popular near me so if you arrive as close to 9 am as possible you are guaranteeing yourself a spot! As the morning gets later the more busy and more people arrive. One good thing is each activity only takes about 35-50 mins to complete. If you do arrive and you find there are no spots most of the time someone would probably be leaving in 5-10 minutes.
Tip #2 - Use buckets for littles to stand on
Home Depot uses lumber pallets covered in canvas as tables. These "tables" are of different heights but most of the time they are higher than normal. So we like to use the 5-gallon buckets of plaster that are in the corner where the workshop is. They are nice and sturdy and perfect for the younger crowd to stand on. This gives your kiddos a nice height to work on the project.
Tip #3 - Read all the instructions before starting and have Fun!
Yes just like your teacher said read all the instructions first and lay out all the parts you will use in order. I find this helps the most, then the child can find the parts and assemble easier. Don't worry if your little one gets tired or stops assembling along the way. Keep in mind you are both still having fun together. If your little one doesn't like one part they will get back interested once they start painting. One of my twins did this at the last project she didn't want to finish assembling but she got back into it once we started painting.
Tip #4 - Wear clothes your ok getting paint on
Try not to wear anything white or brand new. After each project is assembled you will go up to where you signed in and pick out paint for your project. Painting can get a little messy, that's why I like to have my kids wear a smock or clothes I don't mind getting paint on. I also suggest bringing wipes or something to clean your hands after the painting is completed.
Tip #5 - Bring something to transport the wet project back
After your project is completed it will be wet and you will need a way to get it back home. My first suggestion is to try and use the least amount of paint possible. If you apply a thin coat of paint then it will dry faster than globs of paint. If the kiddos have used a bunch of paint then I like to take a clean paint brush and brush off and smooth some of the excess paint.
Once you're finished we find that using a paper bag is a good way to bring the project back home. You can either put the project right in the bag and keep it there till you get home or just set the project on top of the bag preventing the wet project from getting paint in your car. I suggest you take the project out of the bag once you get some so it doesn't stick to the bag.
I hope my 5 Tips for Home Depot kids workshop guide was helpful! Comment below which tip you liked the best and let me know if there is an activity you would like me to review. Remember it's all about Bean Family Fun and making memories together!
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