Club Time
In
an effort to spend more time individually with our children, my husband and I
have set aside a time each week for Boys’ Club & Girls’ Club. This gives us a
specific opportunity to teach our children to become Godly men and Godly women.
We plan specific learning experiences where we can teach our children life
skills and role model Godly character in specific situations.
Today
in Boys’ Club, Caleb learned gun safety skills at the gun range with Daddy.
They shot at our left-over pumpkins to see the damage a bullet can cause.
During
our Girls’ club time, I introduced the skill of sewing a button to Lily. Then,
we practiced the fine motor skill of buttoning and unbuttoning. We had a lot of fun together. Would you like
to hear about what we did? If so… Keep Reading!
Sewing a Button Activity:
Materials:
Buttons
Needle
Tread
Scrap
Fabric Square or Embroidery Interfacing Square
*Disclaimer: I didn’t have
a plastic needle that would fit through the holes of the buttons I had bought
for this activity, so we used a real needle. My little girl is 3 years old. I
took into account her fine motor abilities, listening skills, and focusing
skills when deciding if she was ready to be trusted with a real needle under focused
and cautious supervision.
1.
The first thing we did was introduce vocabulary of the needle. I stressed that
this was a real needle with a real sharp tip that would hurt if it poked into
skin… hers or mine.
2.
I introduced the word thread and showed her how to thread the needle through
the eye.
3.
I introduced the word knot. I demonstrated making a knot and explained why it
was needed.
4.
I demonstrated how to sew the button on the interfacing square a few times and
then held the button while Lily stuck the needle through the hole of the button
and pulled it through the opposite side. (You may choose to use a scrap piece
of fabric for this part of the activity.)
5.
When the thread became short, I tied it off in a knot, and cut the string.
6.
After the first button was completed, I got her started on the following
buttons, but I allowed her to hold the buttons on her own.
7.
She sewed the last 2 buttons on a separate interface square on her own with
just a little help from me to make sure she continued to go in the right
direction. When she finished, I cut 2 holes to match the buttons in the
opposite side that were just big enough for the large buttons to fit through.
8.
After cleaning up our mess, I showed Lily what we made. A new “toy”! One where
she could practice buttoning and unbuttoning on her own. She was so excited
that she had made something herself and enjoyed using it over and over again.
When Daddy got home she eagerly told him and showed him what she had made and
what she could do with the buttons.
For
the first button, I allowed Lily to select a button of her choosing. She chose
a pink one that just happened to be a large button and it worked well because
there was space for my fingers to help her hold the button as she pressed the
needle in and pulled it out.
The
second button she chose was a purple button that just happened to be a small
button. This button made our activity difficult as there wasn’t a safe place to
hold the button and caused an accidental poke. No worries! She didn’t even draw
blood… tis the life of one that sews.
After
this, I encouraged her to choose a large button instead. We made it through
with no further pokes! Yay!
Have
you started teaching your child to sew? What are some of your favorite lessons?
We had such a great time with this activity that I am definitely planning more sewing
during our Girls’ Club time!
Do
you like this idea? Try it! I’d love to hear all about your learning
experience!
God
Bless You on Your Learning Journey ~
