I love sewing. I have been sharing my love for this hobby by slowly introducing it to my children. In doing this, I have discovered there are so many ways to teach young children how to sew!
Check out these great ideas on how to introduce children to sewing! #sewing #teaching Click To Tweet
Egg Carton Sewing
This is a great sewing activity for toddlers. Punch holes out of the bottom of an egg carton. Attach a baby spoon to a piece of ribbon. Let them go at it!
Lacing Cards
Lacing cards are yet another way to introduce sewing to young children. There are many different lacing card sets available to purchase but you can make your own as well! Simply cut shapes out of card stock and use a hole punch to make holes for your child to sew in and out of. Give them a shoe lace and watch them sew!
Beginner Sewing
Provide some plastic mesh (like this), yarn, and a plastic needle. Allow them to stitch whatever they would like into the mesh. Once they’ve mastered this, you can encourage them to sew a button onto the mesh or to sew two pieces of mesh together.
More Beginner Sewing
Stretch burlap or canvas over an embroidery hoop and allow your child to stitch whatever patterns and colours they would like into the fabric.
This activity can be altered by providing a fabric with a basic pattern on it. This may encourage them to follow/accentuate the pattern with their thread. It’s not as open-ended as a blank canvas but it “trains” them for more detailed stitching.
Introduction to a Sewing Machine
If you would like to introduce your child to sewing on a sewing machine, allow them to follow “paths” on a piece of card stock. These sewing machine practice sheets are a great place to start!
Simple Sewing Machine Projects
One of the first sewing projects I did with my daughter was a blanket for her doll bed. Four long straight stitches… simple.
Another project was making a t-shirt pillow.
We took a favourite shirt (which was too small) and turned it inside out. She used the machine to stitch the neck, arms, and half of the body part closed. Then we turned the shirt right-side out and stuffed it with cotton batting. Then she sewed the rest of the body closed. She takes great pride in her shirt pillow.
My father-in-law found this great “retro” sewing book for children. We’ll be using it as a reference for future sewing projects. I also thought I would incorporate sewing into her homeschooling next year… this may be our “textbook”.
Regardless of the approach, I find that children are often more engaged if you are beside them doing a similar activity. Thus, I usually work on my own sewing projects while my children work on theirs.
I hope this provides a bit of inspiration to introduce your children to sewing. If you have any other tips or suggestions, please feel free to comment and share.
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I remember my mom buying a “learning to Sew” type book for me when I was young. Your ideas are great. Please come by tomorrow and share them at Eco-Kids Tuesday!!
That sounds like fun and a great way to start to teach her how to sew. Love the t-shirt pillow!
What a great idea! I love the one with the egg carton. So clever! Hope you’re having a good Monday :)
I loved when my girls started attending a Montessori school in kindergarten and began learning basic sewing techniques. Such a wonderful skill to teach young children. And in my own life I’m so thankful that my Mom taught me some basic sewing, and the basics of how to use a sewing machine. I’m no sewing wiz, but I can do simple repairs and hem pants, which has proved sooo valuable as a Mom!
Awesome!!! I used to sew a lot when my first two were small, and I made many of their clothes and some toys too. The dratted military movers broke my machine a couple of moves ago and I’ve never replaced it. I bought Bella some beginning needlepoint kits for her birthday and will be showing her how to do that this summer. She loves crafting like her Mommy! :D
I agree that working on your own project next to the kids makes them more invested in their work. I think it makes them feel “big” like their Mama. This is a wonderful sequence to follow.
My kids love to lace and string beads (on shoeslaces). I hadn’t thought of the egg cartons, thanks for the idea. Mine love to watch me sew and I like to get them involved young. Pretty soon they can hem their own pants ;)
Besos, Sarah
Blogger at Journeys of The Zoo
Finding Humour in Everyday Life
I love these ideas! Every single last one.
Of all the kids, Aslan has taken to sewing most. She even designs dresses (for her dolls) and stitches everything by hand. The other kids will sew if they have a specific gift they want to make, or if there is something they want and I say “you can make that yourself”. But Aslan literally sews every day.
This is such a great idea! Thanks for sharing at Give Me the Goods link party!
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What a lovely progression of techniques! There are several that I’ve never heard of before, including the egg carton practice & card-stock sewing machine patterns. Very helpful Jennifer- happy to pin this!
Thanks so much for sharing our sewing ideas with us at Eco-Kids Tuesday! Hope to see you again today!
Thanks !!!!!
My girls like to practice sewing too . . . I’ve never seen the egg carton idea – what a great beginner project for the very young. And the t-shirt pillow is brilliant. My mom recently helped my girls hand stitch bean bags.