What my kids have always loved best is when I give them supplies, set up the table so that they won't hurt anything (sheet on table and under table) and let them go at it. They can get amazingly creative! My oldest learned how to sew this way. I would just give him fabric scraps and a not-too-sharp needle and thread and let him go at it. If he had questions, I'd help him, but he figured a lot out on his own this way.