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Offering Your First Class

 Here you are, at the threshold of teaching your first 13 step class - you've painted your Legendary lady, and have morning tea with your Muse. You are engaging with your inner Artist, your Taliswoman. 

You've gathered tools for your Medicine Basket, and rewritten some old stories ... 

And now...

It's time to offer that first 13 step painting class!! Yikes!! 
First - Breathe! You've got this! 

You have likely been gathering ideas for your theme, and jotting down notes from your CoW SiStars' classes. It's great to have a folder of journal to collect these! 

This is a good time to sit with your Muse, journal to refine your ideas and choose the name - Muse of ___ or Queen of ____ is often a good start. Shiloh often suggests to choose a theme that is juicy for us right now, and perhaps has us shaking in our boots.
Gabriella - my first Muse
End of the first day - 2014
This usually isn't the time for offering your ideal destination retreat! Jot down your ideas for that Shiny Object (in a special journal?) so you'll have them later! Then - back to ideas for this can-do workshop! You need two students, and two days. 
  • Pull out (or make) your set of 13 step prompt cards
  • Do a Metacognative drawing or two, exploring your theme: Muse of Creativity, Queen of your Heart, Siren Song... draw, then ask her what she lives by?  What do her symbols represent? What is her Motto, how does she counter the critic?
  • Sort through your Soulful Story Cards, and choose 3 that address your fears about teaching.
  • Do a demo painting, using the same size canvas as your beloveds will work on (16×20" is a good size for your first offering) Follow the flow of your cards, and do the journaling. Do you need to add another card or reminder?
As you're preparing, paint with your students in mind, keep it simple! The 13 steps are a great guideline, they're a teaching outline for our own use.  We generally don't share the step names with the students, as they are proprietary to IC. 
  • You may wish to watch one of the shorter videos - check the dashboard for Queen of your Own Heart or Tea With the Muse, and paint along, adapting for your theme. Stop often to to make notes! 
  • Experiment with glazing one side of the face and the opposite side of the neck with different colors - this adds quick interest. 
  • Practice drawing the face map. A whiteboard, big sheet of paper or extra canvas are good ways to go over the basics.
  • Get a rough idea of how far you want to be by the first break, and the end of the first day.
  • If you're offering a shorter class, combine a couple of steps, and invite the students to journal about the inquiry before class.
  • Heart storm on ways to soothe the critic when she appears! Sending her out to sort gravel in the parking loot is one of my students' favorites! Chocolate is a universal remedy.
  • Choose a reading for your RT circle, and write out your visioning/journey.
  • Keep it simple! As your beloveds get engaged in painting, they don't need lots of instruction - introduce the next concept, then send them back to their paintings! Answer questions as they arise, but "talk less!" 
After you've prepared, found your theme and set the date, you can promote your class, with info on how to register (that can be as simple as "send me a message!")

I use Instagram with tags: #intentionalcreativity #oregonartclass #intuitivepaintingclass, #colorofWoman2021, etc and have my website link in my bio. I also have an artist page on FB and post Events there, then "share" those to my main page and in groups.

I have personal and regional MeetUp groups, and walk IC students and graduates through posting their events in the group. I've found it a good way to connect with beloveds outside our immediate community, and often met gals familiar with IC from other areas.
Sepha and Nadya in Tina Gain's class ('16)
For your first class, invite friends who've expressed interest, others in your community, family members - if you offer a special discount, make sure they know that this is a Special! I give discounts for friends who register together, returning students, and offer scholarships for schlocking supplies or helping with a virtual class! 

You can also teach each other - I have taken several classes from IC SiStars,  it's always a joy, and I learn something new each time! 

Find more tips on supplies for your first class here.
Breathe - you've got this!    
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