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Thread: Proposal to teach open form crochet class, all feedback welcome!

  1. #1
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    Proposal to teach open form crochet class, all feedback welcome!

    I saw that the local 'free' university is looking for course proposals. I wanted to follow up on my maker faire work by creating a class in crochet. At first I was thinking about the dragon project but that is very specific and takes a long time. I am thinking about twiddle cuffs as a project to use a lot of different techniques in one smaller project. A twiddle cuff is for people with alzheimers or dementia, they tend to pick at their hands and cause sores. The twiddle cuff is something they can put their hands in and has many textures and objects attached to keep their hands busy.

    I want to call it open form crochet, free form crochet is a very specific style actually, not just that you do not follow a pattern. I have a couple stitch patterns that I can teach that create texture. I also have 2 garbage bags of yarn that was just donated to my program in addition to what I personally have! I get a lot of variety yarn at goodwill as well. So the materials fee would be $5-10 to use as much yarn and doo-dads as you want (lace, beads, etc), another $5 if you need to buy a hook. Oh and part of the advertising would say NO GRANNY SQAURES. I kinda hate them.

    Still working out kinks, I am thinking 3 hours total either in 3 sessions or one long one. On a weekend. Lots of handouts on stitches and basic patterns. Feedback welcome here!

  2. #2
    Senior Member Miss Cellane's Avatar
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    Just off the top of my head, in no particular order:

    1. Could you add a second project, so that people can choose one or the other? The twiddle cuff is for a pretty specific audience, and while someone might want to learn to crochet, they may have no need for a twiddle cuff. Perhaps a drawstring bag (just read they are in style for fall), or a textured scarf with fringe? Something that might draw a wider range of people.

    2. Is this class for beginners or intermediate crocheters? Your description isn't clear. "Lots of different techniques" sounds like intermediate, but "handouts on stitches and basic patterns" sounds more beginners.

    3. I guess what isn't clear to me is if this is a class that is going to teach crochet by making a twiddle cuff, or a class about making a twiddle cuff that happens to be crocheted. It's a subtle difference, but will attract different students.

  3. #3
    Senior Member herbgeek's Avatar
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    If I signed up for a learn how to crochet class , I would be kinda annoyed that I could only make 1 or 2 things the instructor decided. If it was however, a "Made a twiddle cuff" class, then I could choose to take it or not. If its a specific type of crochet class (like I think you are indicating) then maybe you want to explain more on what this open crochet is or isn't, so people could decide ahead of time if they were interested in it, rather than being surprised when they got there that the class wasn't what they expected. If I heard open crochet, I would think that open meant I could pick any project I wanted, and the instructor would help me if I got stuck on anything. I would never have thought it was a specific technique.

    In other words, if you have something specific in mind, you need to be specific on your advertising to attract the right students, and to avoid the wrong students who signed up because they made assumptions on what you were offering.

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    Maybe two 1.5 hour classes? Gives students more time to actually work and feel productive.

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    All great ideas, i will work that into my proposal

  6. #6
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    I think the point about the level of crochet you will be teaching is important. There is a big difference between someone wanting to learn to crochet and someone who has even a basic level of skill. Simply learning to hold and use a crochet hook to make a simple, basic, and "even" chain stitch as a base row can sometimes be a challenge, let alone learning to "see" where to make the next stitches, etc. Actually having project pieces/patterns available makes this sound more like an intermediate level class and that should definitely be made clear from the start. Good luck! Sounds like it will be fun!
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