Attention: All Care Managers, Therapists and Activity Leaders...

"Just what is the point
of crafts?"

A Practical Look at  the WHYs and HOWs of
Craft Teaching



Dear Craft Leader

  • Teaching crafts in a care setting?
  • Looking to develop your understanding of why you do what you do?
  • Running a craft activity programme?
  • Need a fresh look at the point of crafts?

 If so then read on...

Over the past 10 years I have been teaching in Adult Education.  Part of my role is to   offer craft training and workshops for those who are Cared For, and those who Work  In Care. It has involved me in running practical craft sessions and to talk about issues around the why's and how's of planning and delivering creative activity programmes.

The majority of those who come to my sessions are committed care-workers who believe in the value of the creative process.  They are poeple who really want to understand  how to write and run activities that make a difference to those they work with.

I've also trained people how to teach.  Over a 5 day period participants learn the essentials of sharing information.  They see how to encourage others to participate in and benefit from learning experiences.

I know from my research as a crafter and teacher, that there are very few training materials  that focus entirely on

The Why, The Who, the What and the How of
Teaching Crafts.

When I started teaching  it was the kind of information I was looking for.  As a new craft teacher I wanted to know it all.  I urgently needed to know:

  • How to teach a practical subject
  • How to take people from where they were to a new level of learning
  • What to say and how to say it
  • What exactly I should demonstrate and when
  • What I should get people to 'do'
  • How to break the task down into manageable bit-seized chunks
  • How to know if my students were learning
  • How to tell if I was any good and what to improve
Basically I desired to  become

a good craft teacher who knew the subject
AND
how to communicate it

Well, 10 years ago there was precious little information out there, and even now, there's not much more.

What troubled me was that after years of succesful teaching, after training many groups of individuals in how to teach practical subjects, after sessions and sessions of leading workshops and listening to problems, I knew  what others needed to know.....

And that was to really think about the most important part of  their work which meant

not concentrating on WHAT they were going to teach, but on WHY they wanted to teach crafts
in the first place

It was a surprising insight really, because all the training  I had had in teaching was on the subject of teaching.  It taught me how to teach.

But what it really didn't do was to get me to question why crafts was important in the first place. And this is where my thinking differed...

You see because I was teaching a range of people from different backgrounds, (those with disabilities, the elderly, the adult learner....),  I had to really think WHY does crafts matter? 

My approach became not so much concerned about WHAT I would teach and HOW, but WHY is crafts, and a craft programme of benefit to this individual, in this organisation, at this time?

And  I started to think about all the others, like me,  engaged in doing what I was doing.
  • People working in day care trying to offer a broader artistic programme to those they were responsibile for

  • Care workers in day and residential settings, actively seeking a person centered approach for their users/members/learners

  • Teachers and remedial therapists keen to appreciate the wider implication to offering creative opportunities
  • Activity leaders and directors, already engaged in important, supporting activities and keen to share their insights and to develop others

There were many  I knew who could benefit from learning about the WHY of Crafts.

As I came to get excited about what people wanted to learn about I thought more about how to assemble  a training manual.to benefit all sort of individuals in all sorts of places.

I wanted this Training Manual to be for all kinds of staff.  It needed to offer practical advice and exercises, that came from experience, and not just theory.

I knew from those I'd successful taught to share crafts that they exercises needed to get the users to ask questions of themselves.  To delve into the reasons behind why they do what they do.

And as it all came together, the emphasis of this training manual became clear.

It was a series of activites and exercises that asked questions of the very people  who offered  activities themselves!

Does this sound like the kind of manual that would be of value to you in your workplace?

Here's just a few of the questions in Section 1 on 'Defining our purpose'.  Would these questions help you to consider your personal approach to crafting..?
  • Just what are the responsibilities and expectations of my role?
  • What is the attitude to crafts of my Organisation, and how does their approach fit with mine?
  • How do I really feel about the role of crafts?
  • What have been my experiences of being creative?
  • What do I do to  help and encourage the creative beliefs of those I work with?
  • What is the impact of negative/positive attitudes on personal creativity
  • How can MY  approach make a difference to others' barriers and motivations?
  • and more....

Altogether, I've assembled 5 units, each focussing on a different aspect of teaching and sharing crafts

  1. Defining our Purpose
  2. The Learning Process
  3. Session Planning
  4. Micro-teaching
  5. Checking Learning
'Defining our purpose' is a great place to start as a questioning craft worker.  As you consider some of the fundamentals of why you do what you do, you'll appreciate the role you play and how important it is to believe in what you offer.

The Section on 'The Learning Process' explains the importance of learner-centred programmes.    It's all about understanding how to make information match needs, interests, levels of understanding and motivations.  So in teaching crafts, it's no longer enough to know how to do XYZ.

It looks at putting together activities to meet the various needs of your learning group. Considering how you incorporate an Equal opportunites policy is vital for organisations that are focussed on meeting the needs and abilities of their users.  These all imply a service-led establishment which is beneficial to everyone.

If you're running activity programmes you'll want to find out all about how to support and encourage your learners.

It's valuable for you to know about learning: what it is and how to facilitate it.  It's about knowing how to present information so that learners receive it in the best possible way.

And along with this you'll want to understand how to pitch things to their level, so that the words, tone, and style of communicating  gets through any barriers of resistance that may be surrounding them. 

An important part of 'The Learning Process' identifies the 4 widely recognised learning styles, (activitivist, pragamatist, reflector and theorist).

You'll son be able to recognise each preferential style and their characteristics.  This will quickly help you to know which approach suits each of your  learners.  Any learning programme must take all styles into consideration, and present craft activities the way that learners like to learn.  You'll be given practical approaches and examples to help you identify where YOU and YOUR learners fit into all this.

Today's teaching isn't about chalk and talk anymore.


Good teaching today starts from where the learner 'is'.  That means you need to make your programme suit  each of your learners. Doing this gives them a way to  take part in your activities, at their individual  level of ability, need and motivation.

You'll also look at the important part that memory plays in learning crafts.  It questions the factors that affect our ability to learn and to remember.  It also suggests ways to help us recall new learning. 

There is much that we can do to encourage motivation. Understanding some of the barriers to crafts (our own and others') will make a big difference in how your learner think about your craft sessions.  To put it simply: we start from where we're at.  Thinking about your learners and their take on the whole crafting thing will greatly influence the success of what you do and how you do it.

Offering crafts as part of a complete social and educational programme needs  dedicated, supportive individuals who understand the processes of teaching and learning crafts. Thinking about how to create positive learning environments it a great way to improve participation and achievement.

These 2 sections will give you the confidence to identify issues surrounding your approach to the PROCESS of crafts. This manual is not about the WHAT of crafts.  There are many, many books out that will give you ideas on what to do. 

'Facilitating Creative Activities' is entirely
focussed on the WHY and HOW of craft teaching.

The next 3 sections take you through
  1. How to actually put a session together (Session Planning)
  2. How to practice a session delivery (Microteach)
  3. and finally, how to know if your learners are learning , and whether you did a good job of it  (Checking Learning)

Section 3 is Session Planning.  No self respecting educational organisation runs any kind of activity without some kind of session planning.  Whatever the style and approach to planning that you (and your organisation take), it's the old adage...  The more you know, the more you can choose what to leave out...

You reallly need to appreciate the factors that affect the learning space, learning take-up, learning retention and learning recall. That's knowing how to make sure  learners are receptive to what you're doing, how to help them remember what they've done and how to use it to help with new learning.

Of course teachers know this.  It's nothing new.  Perhaps what is new is using a lot of these approaches to help you create a long term approach to craft teaching and craft programmes. 

If means you understanding as much about
people skills as you do about craft skills

As much about
how and why  you  do what  you  do,
as about  what and  how to do it...

To do all this, and more, you as the teacher, leader or facilitator must be able to get to grips with the why's of learning as well as the hows.

So once all these issues have been looked at you'll have the chance to study those tried and tested stalwarts of the teaching profession...

  How to plan, present and then look back

Session planning takes you by the hand through all the elements of session planning.
It looks at:
  • The learning cycle: planning, preparation, delivery and evaluation
  • Sensory considerations and handling difficulties that you need to consider
  • Communication issues in terms of tone, pitch, level and the words themselves
  • You'll get top tips on how to make every bit of information and instruction count
  • Health and Safety : what you need to think about
  • Learning outcomes, an explanation of aims and objectives.  What they areand why  they matter
  • Budgeting: making your programme within budget
  • Preparing resources to support your learning
  • The practical session: how to break it down so that it has the right mix of explanation, demonstration and a guded practical
  • And what about the demonstration: how much to say, when.  When should you show and when do they do?
  • Practical planning exercises on writing lesson plans
And there's still two more sections to go.

As you go through the manual you'll get loads of opportunities to build on the theory and to work through the exercises.  If you're workingwith a group you'll be able to break off at timely points to help them to apply what you've learnt. 

The Microteach
Having taught many people over the years, I can confidently say that this is the one part of all the teaching courses I've offered that brings both the most concerns, and the greatest positive results!

The build-up to this part is very busy as there's so much to learn.  How you (as a leader/trainer) build this into the programme is very important.

Essentially, the participants are all asked to plan, prepare and then deliver a mini microteach session (15 minutes)  to the rest of their group/colleagues on the course.  If your group is large and you have another trainer available you may choose to break  into 2 groups.

What is important is that there is enough time between the theory and the Microteach iteself to prepare and ask all the questions that might come up.

The Microteach has many parts to it and you are encouraged to ensure that the group consider many things in their planning. 

This section gives you guidelines and prompts, handouts and notes to help you support your learners in what can be a stressful time.

However - absolutely everyone who has ever gone through this part ALWAYS finds that it is so rewarding! Watching everyone else, and being able to give feedback on the experience, is in itself, very valuable for everyone. At this stage the group will be equal in their learning and feel able to contribute to and get value peer assessment of their  mini teaching session.

Having completed the Microteach session the last part of the teaching puzzle is Assessment and Evaluation.  These 2 approaches are often confused and misunderstood.

Assessment is all about checking how the learner has done.  It will include ways to check that they have learnt what was presented, or how they have progressed in other less obvious ways.  These days Soft Outcomes - where the most imoportant outcome isn';t pehaps as visible, are really important.  They are especially vital in those organsiations that offer crafts as part of an overall social and educational programme. Such places that seek to measure tiny improvements in participation perhaps, or communication.  Places where actually finishing and creating something is lower in priority.

For many places that offer crafts (and this may be you), these less obvious outcomes are far more important that an end product. (I'm thinking here of that old 90's expression - that the journey is more important that arriving).

So assessment in this section offers ideas in checking how your learners have done.  It offers ways to chart progress,  and ideas on how to devise your own forms to record what matters to you.

Evaluation is more concerned with YOUR reflection on how it all went.  Thoughts such as:
  • What did I do that worked and what didn't?
  • What could I do to improve things?
  • What did I do that I could use again?
  • How can I build on successful areas and make them even better?

This form of reflection is really important in developing good teaching methods that work for you and what you do.

Many busy people often feel they have no time or place for Assessment and Evaluation, but it's so important, that a whole section is devoted to encouraging you to look back and come out smiling.

So, 5 sections that will give you a real grounding in Why crafts and How to Teach crafts.

And to support those of you in teaching and delivering these sections I've included a full 6th section on handouts covering each of the 5 units.

Is 'Facilitating Creative Activities Manual' for you?

Yes, if you're looking for  stimulating ideas and exercises to help you consider why you do crafts in your organisation. It will prove  invaluable in helping you to plan and deliver activities that really match the needs and abilities of your learners.

If you're a running teacher-trainer workshops, care-centred programmes, activity centres or remedial therapy units, then you'll get ideas for making YOUR ongoing programmes even more successful.

I've also included a Bonus pdf report "Winning at Classroom Crafts.  Drawn from 15 years experience of teaching crafts, you'll get valuable information here on how best to prepare, demonstrate and teach crafts to your group of learners.

At £129 it represents excellent value for money.

5 full sections on:
  1. Defining our Purpose
  2. The Learning Process
  3. Session Planning
  4. Micro-teaching
  5. Checking Learning
  • Presented in a ring binger, each of the 5 units has a simple introductory paragraph with a bulleted  Section Focus
  • Students have listed  Learning Outcomes and Section Requirements
  • Through the sections there are  boxed training points and numbered activity exercises
  • Regular summaries (Section and Unit) list all the major points covered
  • The Training Manual comes with a comprehensive Learner Handout Section to support your training delivery (over 65 pages)
I often consider not the value of training, but what will be the cost of not allowing staff to follow recognised, successful approaches to crafting?

How will your Organisation's users benefit from being taught by staff who have reviewed their whole attitude to WHY Crafts?

The result of the training will be staff who are clearer in their responsibilities and attitude to the crafting process

 It will increase their ability to respond to individual learners, and
to present activities that encourage success


You can't lose with my 100%,
money-back guarantee

Each and every Craft Teacher purchase comes with  a 100%, no-questions-asked, money-back guarantee.  I want to be sure that you like what you get and that it doesn’t disappoint you.

If for any reason it fails to live up to your expectation,  just contact me within 56 days
(8 weeks) of purchase and I'll refund you your money.

I really want you to be happy.  It’s good for me, and it’s good for you.

Place your order for the 
'Facilitating Creative Activities'
Manual now

Geraldine Jozefiak
The Craft Teacher


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