Swarming and Teaching

A swarm is a group of Cricut owners gathering to use their machines and to learn more about using them. There was a swarm at the LSS and I ran the thing. Well, sort of. They advertised it, they got folks signed up for it and I showed up to teach things during the swarm. I started by asking the ladies what they wanted to learn. They wanted to learn how to use the layered cartridges and they wanted to use the pens. So that's what we focused on. I repeated stuff about layers as I cut a Minnie Mouse until they were just about to get bored, but the pizza came. They drifted away to cut their own projects. The repetition had made it sink in and they could do something with layers on their own.

I also shared a few tricks I know about general cropping skills. I even taught the owner of the store something!

I realized that the lady who usually runs the crops hasn't realized that she needs to answer questions that have not been asked. Many times folks are using some technique because it is the only way that they know, not because they think it is the best way. If you show them a different way and teach them how to use that way, they have options and feel more skilled. A good teacher will work the room, moving around, checking on the students and making sure that they are successful in what they are trying to do. They will stop them in the middle of using a clumsy technique, teach them a different technique and help them be successful with the new skill. If the new technique requires that they purchase something that the shop sells, so what? It's good for everyone involved.