Originally Posted by sewbizgirl

I would draw line trails on paper and let the girls practice following the lines with an unthreaded sewing machine, until they get their coordination. The needle holes need to stay on the lines. They will learn sewing machine coordination, as well as speed with the controller, and can't hurt anything. Besides, most kids find this activity a load of fun!

As an alternative you could tear out coloring book pages and have them follow those lines.