Yesterday my 2 daughters, ages 11 and 9, started sewing for the first time. They both enjoyed it, and I was not as much of a total wreck as I thought I'd be. We used my Janome 6600, without the foot pedal. Just set it to a slow pace and went to work. They each completed 2 coasters, doing the layout, pinning, sewing, clipping corners and turning the corners. Worked out great. Next week... little tote bags.