Teaching Kids

On Wednesday evening I had a chance to teach some kids to stitch a simple project. I decided felt "pillows" would be simple, and possible. I had the kids draw the shape they wanted on a piece of paper the size of the finished project. Most of the kids used all the paper, a couple were quite a bit smaller. (We had 7 kids and 3 teachers.) I gave suggestions as to shapes, and showed a heart. We ended up with 4 hearts, a butterfly, a shark, and a cross. (Of course I did not have my camera with me, and by the time I got my hands on it, the kids were gone.)



We cut out the paper pattern, and used it to cut out the felt. We learned how to pull thread from a skein (craft thread) and make a knot. The most difficult part was threading the needle. I don't think I've ever threaded as many needles in one night before.

The stitching was challenging as well, but everyone got it. It was a good choice for thread on this count, because I only had 2 or 3 tangles/knots to undo. Then we stuffed our pillows and finished the stitching. (That was fun.)

I was worried that there would not be enough to do. The green/orange heart only took me 5 minutes, so I prepared a little example of other stitches they could learn.



I didn't need to worry. We did (mostly) finish. One or two kids took baggies home with the supplies. But we were the last group to finish and go out for snacks. I do think everyone had fun, though.