The Dowagiac District Library’s latest event give local children the opportunity to build something this Saturday — their minds, in a figurative sense, and towers upon towers of LEGOs, in a literal one.

The downtown library is partnering with the local Bricks 4 Kidz program to present a special open house event, taking place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. that day in the library’s children section located on the building’s second floor. The event is free, and open to children of all ages.

Leading the activity Saturday morning will be Michael Conner, the owner of the recently established educational service, who will be assisted by Miss Dowagiac Tori Smith and her court of honor. The lesson plan that morning are activities based on the laws of energy and motion, with children learning more about these concepts by building model windmills at one of several stations using the ubiquitous toy building blocks, Conner said.

“It’s not just your standard play session with LEGOs,” Conner said. “[Bricks 4 Kidz] is a structured program that follows the national STEM [science, technology, engineering and mathematics] program.”

A special station will be set up for preschoolers as well.

Library Director Matt Weston first heard about Bricks 4 Kidz from a patron, and after speaking with Conner, was impressed by what the program could offer for the institution’s youngest patrons, he said.

“It’s educational, hands-on, and it looks like a lot of fun,” Weston said.

Conner, a former resident of Chicago, recently started the local franchise of the national education organization, focusing on providing programs to children in living in Dowagiac and Edwardsburg. The program offers a wide-range of educational yet fun lesson plans for children, incorporating specialized LEGO kits, Conner said.

“It’s fun teaching kids,” Conner said about his new venture. “It’s wonderful seeing the looks on their faces whenever they learn something new.”

Conner’s franchise is one 650 Bricks 4 Kidz chains across the world. The program was established eight years ago in St. Augustine, Florida, as an afterschool class, and has since grown into a internationally recognized program that teaches kids about STEM subjects at venues such as summer camps, robotic classes and even birthday parties.

Saturday’s open house is the first major show for the local franchise, and Conner is excited to show the kids in attendance just how fun learning can be, he said.

“We’re trying to make it as big and as fun for the kids as possible, so they’ll want to learn more in the future,” Conner said.

For more information about this or future library events, people can visit the library’s Facebook page or their website, www.dowagiacdl.org.