There is no better teacher of crafts than someone who makes crafts their business on a day-to-day basis. If you have a passion for crafts and you have a fondness for teaching coupled with plenty of patience and understanding then you can definitely teach crafting to others. In addition, this is an excellent way to promote your own business in the process. Teaching crafting is a way to help your sales increase and that is always good news!
A good rule of thumb when it comes to teaching in any field is to “Learn it before you teach it.” In addition, practice making your crafts and going through each step one by one when you are alone so you will know if you have what it takes teach others. It is a good idea to practice talking aloud as you go through the craft making process and to always anticipate questions that you maybe asked by your students.
If you decide to become a teacher of crafting, you might want to gather together a couple of friends in your home and set up a mock up classroom and then practice teaching your friends for a trial run. Not only will this give you more confidence in teaching your craft but also in being up in front of a group of people if you are not used to that. Be aware that teaching a class is not the same as selling your work at a flea market or a craft show. You need to be an expert in both cases but in the former, you must also be able to start from the beginning and teach others what you already know. Sometimes retracing your steps in your mind is not always as easy as it appears to be at first.
If teaching crafting to others appeals to you get in touch with local schools, community colleges and associations to see if the need is there. In some cases you might be teaching a class to beginners one night a week in an empty classroom at the local elementary school or you might be teaching a weekend workshop for novices or intermediates in the basement of your local church on a weekend. If you know anyone who teaches a craft or artistic class, such as drawing, painting, pottery or woodworking you might want to talk with them and see if they could direct you to where you could find out more information about starting up a class of your own.
After you have decided that teaching is definitely for you then decide how much time you can spare for this undertaking. How much of a time commitment is involved is an important aspect of this decision. Some recreation centers put on craft oriented classes that are just for the fall or winter months and could be one evening a week, two or sometimes more. Figure out how much time you can devote to teaching and be realistic with yourself about what you can and cannot accomplish.
If you do come to teach a crafting class, you may or may not have complete input into what goes into the class. If you have complete say, you might decide to begin the class by telling the students how you came to be interested in the particular craft in question and your specific qualifications for teaching the class. You might want to give a brief history of the craft or of crafting in general. Make sure when you begin to teach your craft to the students that not everybody will learn at the same rate so be patient and understanding as well as encouraging to each and every person.
Promote your business whenever you can throughout the duration of the class but do not overdo it and make the class seem like one big marketing ploy. Ask questions of your students and be responsive to both their answers as well as the questions they in turn ask of you. Since crafting is a creative venue, make the class as relaxing and as fun as you wish. Encourage as much student input as possible and make it your mission to enjoy yourself as well. You might even want to plan a field trip to a craft store or a craft show as part of the class.