Quilts n Kids

Teaching contrast and making quilt blocks with my son's kindergarten class this past Monday night! I was nervous earlier in the day, not having heard from my son's teacher and unsure who was taking the lead with the lesson -- but she came in and handled it adroitly, and the kids and parents (ten kids and maybe 12 parents) had a blast. I precut 8x8" squares for the ground and cut triangles in varying colors (and textures) that fit within the square. I backed each of the triangles with fusible, the paper-backed kind by Heat N Bond. After learning about the idea of contrast, and the differences between high, medium and low contrast, the kids colored in a "template" with a contrast style to pattern their block after. Then they picked a fabric square and a set of triangles (4 or more). Moms and Dads helped them iron on their triangles, and voila! Quilt blocks, no-sew. Now I'll gather them all together, add stitches for decoration, quilt batting and backing to them, and add yarn ties at each of the corners. Next week the kids will tie their pieces together to form a big "quilt" for display, and later, they'll take their own blocks home with them. A fun project!