Do you let your kids use a hammer & nails?

When I dropped my son off at Kindergarten for the first time (that was 10 years ago BTW)....the first thing I noticed was a very large woodworking station.  I assumed it was a toy woodworking station filled with toy woodworking tools.  

My assumption was not correct.  

This was a real woodworking station.  REAL.  Complete with a real hammer, real nails, real screwdrivers, and a real saw.  

Yep.  It could really saw.  REALLY.  

My son's teacher probably saw the look of horror on my face, as she quickly reassured me that the kids only used that station with appropriate adult supervision.  Oh ok.  That makes it better I guess.  

My son (and his classmates) made it through the year with all fingers and toes still intact, so apparently no harm was done.  But still....I just CAN'T imagine having those tools in my classroom today.  Sometimes I have to take scissors away from little friends who can't use them safely....can you imagine if I had real life-size tools in my room?!?!

Do any of you have something like this in your room?!?  

The closest I've gotten to having such a station in my room is a Playskool Hammer & Nails set.   It's definitely the most popular "tub toy" we have in our room, and my kids beg to get to use it. 

The set I have is old.  Really old.  I ordered it off eBay.  

It's basically a set of cork boards, small wooden pieces, 

tiny nails, and a kid sized hammer.  The kids use the small 

wooden pieces to make all kinds of designs and pictures.  

It's great for kids who need to strengthen their fine motor skills! 

It's pretty neat to see what they come up with!

So do you have hammers & nails in your classroom?  LOL