Fill Your Family’s Summer Needs at the Microsoft Store #SmartHappensHere

Summer is here, and I’m already running out of ideas and funds for what to do with my daughter. If only I lived closer to a Microsoft store. Why, you might ask? Mostly because of the FREE YouthSpark Summer Camps program. Last week I had the chance to visit the Microsoft store in San Francisco, CA (there are oodles of locations across the country though) as part of a sponsored campaign. I was surprised by what I found on my tour of the store.

Microsoft Store YouthSpark Summer Camps

In the middle section of the store, the morning Summer Camp was in. Whoa—those kids looked so engaged! Even during their short break, some couldn’t wait to head back to their seat to get back to their coding project.

YouthSpark Summer Camps run each week through summer, Monday through Thursday. Participants can choose coding, photography, or movie making. The morning group is made up of kids ages 8—10 while kids ages 11—13 get their two-hour session in the afternoon. No previous knowledge or experience is needed as the campers will learn everything they need to know in the class itself. Oh, and they get a fun camp shirt to wear. Parents get their own mini 1/2-hour training session so they’ll have a better idea of what their kids are learning and to stay “in the loop” with the current technology. Unfortunately, parents do not get a fun camp shirt to wear.

Microsoft Store Products, Services, Training

The Microsoft Store itself is a treasure trove of techie goodness. From three areas to play family-friendly games on the new Xbox One, the preview station for upcoming items like the Surface Pro 3, the massive inventory of Microsoft products, and even the Perceptive Pixel screen just outside the store, everyone in the family is sure to find something to grab their attention. Reservations for one-on-one training are available but walk-ins are always welcome. Enough staff is generally kept on-hand so the longest a walk-in will have to wait to be helped is 5—10 minutes. Not bad at all.

Then there are the store specials. Who doesn’t love a good discount?! Right now, there some fab PC offers for grads including $100 toward the purchase of a PC $599 or more. Oh, and did you know that all teachers and students always save 10% at the Microsoft store? That’s a nice few dollars saved on each purchase.

Find your local store to see what camps, classes, and specials are being offered.

So whether you are looking for FREE summer activities for the kids, some Personal Training with your Microsoft device, or to fill the need for a new smartphone, tablet, laptop, PC, or video game, you might want to head to the Microsoft store. There you’ll find the products you need and helpful customer service to get the most out of them. Just be careful around all the shiny new products. I walked out with a HUGE urge to pick up an Xbox One and a Kinect and to put in a pre-order of the upcoming Surface Pro 3! Looks like I have some saving up to do 🙂

‘Like’ the Microsoft store on Facebook and get the latest news and offers:

This blog post is part of a paid SocialMoms and Microsoft blogging program. The opinions and ideas expressed here are my own.