I started my 9 yr old GD sewing 1/4" seams on scraps. Then let her sew some little square pillows. She made her first quilt using some of my leftover 2 1/2" x 6 1/2" strips sewing them in sets of three (let her pair them up). This is her first quilt:
www.quiltingboard.com/t-139936-1.htm