I taught a quilting class to girls in grades 4 - 6 at a gifted and talented center. We met once a week for two and a half hours -- nine times during the semester. Every one of the girls finished a quilt which was hers to keep, but we made several which hung on the center's walls for about five years. We used fabric crayons on squares (which I set), then used a sheet for backing, and tied the whole thing with knitting yarn. I was given the use of several cast-off sewing machines from the high school's home economics department.
When it came time for their individual quilts, the girls chose patterns which contained squares and very few triangles. We carefully cut all the block pieces before we began any sewing. I put matching pieces into sandwich bags and labeled them. We practiced sewing using copy paper with straight lines drawn on and worked without using thread in the machines. The girls got pretty good.
Then we moved to fabric with thread. I wish you could have seen the "one-quarter-inch" seams! Some of them actually measured about one inch! I spent quite a bit of time after school taking blocks apart and resewing them.
The girls all had something truly special to keep when the class was over. The next semester, I had more students who wanted to take the class than I had room for. There were even boys who thought the class would be cool! As it turned out, I had a very understanding principal who allowed me to do two sessions of the class, so I was able to accommodate twenty-four eager young quilters instead of the usual twelve.
Your upcoming very worthwhile endeavor makes me miss the thrill of getting young people into such a wonderful hobby.