You don’t have to want to be a carpenter or electrician to warrant learning fundamental skills of these trades. Think about that loose cabinet door, hole in the wall that needs to patched up, the outlet that needs to be replaced, or the broken light fixture that needs to be fixed – do you really want to have to call a professional, pay the travel fee, stay home during the workday for the repair, and then pay the labor and material fees? As adults, these scenarios and the cost associated with them often seem like nuisances in our otherwise busy schedules. But as parents and as educators, we can actually do something about this. We can introduce our kids to basic carpentry and electrical skills that prepare them to solve real-world problems they’ll face in the future.

Why Early Exposure to Practical Skills is Key

Technology has revolutionized how people live, collaborate, and problem solve, and learning a hands-on skill like woodworking and wiring has become rarer and rarer. Yet, it’s these very abilities that can lay a foundation for essential careers in the trades, engineering, design, and more. Early exposure to carpentry and electrical work – even at the most fundamental levels – can help kids learn about how things work, teach them how to troubleshoot, develop frustration tolerance, and build their confidence in what they can do and create with their own two hands. Whether or not kids decide to pursue these skills in their future professions, the benefits extend beyond the classroom.

How To Make Learning Fun and Innovative

There are plenty of ways to engage your kids in activities that help them build hands-on skills and introduce them to concepts fundamental to carpentry and electrical work. Here are just a few examples:

Carpentry:

• Build a cardboard picture frame: Kids can practice measuring their frame parts, cut them to size, and apply glue to secure the frame in place before deciding how they want to decorate it and what photo they want to feature.

• Patch a hole in drywall: If you’ve ever rented a home or apartment, you’re all too familiar with the end of lease routine of patching up all the holes created by handing decorations. Learning how to patch a hole, spackle, sand, and repaint the wall is sure to be a skill kids will reuse long after their first learning experience.

• Build a box from popsicle sticks: Use popsicle sticks to construct a small box and teach kids about how to plan, measure, and assemble parts in a structure while keeping them tightly aligned.

Electrical:

• Build a simple circuit with aluminum foil: Get some aluminum foil as wiring and run it from the bottom of a battery to the terminals of an LED (you can use a single light from a string light for this) to teach kids about conductivity and electricity flow.

• Change a light bulb: The next time a light goes out in your home, take your kid on a trip to home depot with you to find the correct volt, wattage, and temperature bulb and have them change the light bulb out.

• Change a battery in an electrical device: The next time a remote, flashlight, or other battery-operated device dies, teach your kid about positive and negative connections, different types of batteries, and have them change the battery to make the device operational again.

Every hands-on activity a kid engages in has the power to spark their curiosity and help expose them to fundamental skills that will make a difference in their learning and development in the classroom and beyond.

Ready for more advanced hands-on activities?

While these example activities are easy to set up and begin with accessible materials and supplies, it will require a bit more planning to set the stage for more advanced age-appropriate project-based activities that expose kids to carpentry and electrical skills. That’s why Elemental Hardware Enrichment designs, manufactures, and offers instructional services for exactly this!

Structured learning makes the world of a difference in supporting all students, and it’s important to design these learning experiences and the environments and rules in which kids learn in such a way so that they can both experience a challenge but also power through and end the project with a sense of accomplishment, thus building their confidence. In our DIY Builders classes, our experienced instructors will guide students through each step, learning objectives, and facilitate a positive learning environment so that learning practical skills with us is not only useful but also fun.

Each session is led by experienced instructors who guide students through the steps, share tips, and encourage teamwork. With the right support, kids not only pick up practical skills but also learn to work alongside others, making friends while they build.

Ready to empower the kids in your life as problem-solvers and future innovators? Check out our services to learn more about how we can work together.