Last Thursday was my second quilting class - Quilter’s University 102. The class description says “Learn strip piecing, chain piecing, basic paper piecing and more! Proper pressing techniques (not ironing!). Continued focus on accurate ¼” seams.” Sounds like good stuff to know for quilting, right? Well. The class did not cover ANY of the above items, with the exception of the ¼” seam and pressing - kind of a no-brainer.

Instead, we learned to make these:

A flying geese block. I did not know what it was called before this class (so, I guess I did learn *something*), but I did know that this is by far my least favorite, most disliked quilt block of any that I’ve ever seen. I just don’t like it. And, if I had known that this was what the class was going to consist of, frankly, I would not have wasted three hours of my time.

We also had a substitute teacher for the class. To give her some credit, she had very short notice that she’d be teaching. But, compared to the instructor we had for the first class, she was just not my style of teacher. She micromanaged everyone in the class, and never gave us a clear indication of what we were supposed to be learning or doing. The entire class was spent waiting for the teacher to come around and give us an indication of what, exactly, we were supposed to do next. It was extremely inefficient. She also expected us to have a book and other supplies that we were never told to purchase before the class. There was clearly a lack of communication between the store, the instructor, and the students.

All of this got me thinking about what makes a good crafting (knitting, quilting, etc.) class. First and foremost, I think it’s important that the activities taught in class are similar to what is described in the promotional e-mail/brochure/etc. After all, if you’re not learning at least the things that got you interested in the class in the first place, why bother? Next, I think it is extremely helpful to have a class handout. The handout should give the big picture of what will be taught, and also give details of any techniques taught. What good is a class if you can’t go home and repeat what you learned? Third, a good instructor can make the difference between a worthless class and a worthwhile one. This is kind of a crapshoot, unless you get a recommendation from someone who has taken the class and who has a similar learning style. Finally, the other students in the class can also contribute to whether or not you enjoy the class. Just one “crochety old (or young) lady” can ruin an entire class for the rest of the students. This is also a total crapshoot, as you have no control whatsoever over the other students. A good instructor can make a huge difference here, as well.

This quilting class failed on three of my four criteria - the activities taught were not anything like what I expected, there was no handout, and the instructor’s teaching style (hands on, micromanaging) was not my style at all.

What do you think makes a good crafting class?