How to Teach Anyone Anything

It can seem intimidating to be tasked with teaching someone something, no matter if it's a room full of fidgety little ones or a group of your peers.

Take a deep breath, let it out, and dive right in with these handy tips!

Never Assume

Start from the beginning and never assume they know anything. If you begin with the basics you can be assured everyone is on the same page. Teach them everything building outward from the basics of the subject.

Move it or Lose it!

Get them moving! No matter the age group, adding some stretches or a fun physical activity to your lesson will bring blood and oxygen to their brain which allows for greater attention to you and retention of the information you provide. Start with movement and take breaks for movement if you will be speaking for more than 45 minutes.

Show Your Passion

Noone will learn from a teacher who is not passionate about the subject! If you are tasked with teaching a subject you aren't particularly passionate about, do some research and find something about it you can love, and work outward from there.

Adjust

Remember that everyone has different learning styles- visual, audio and kinesthetic- or doing. Try to implement as many of techniques as possible so as to ensure everyone is getting the information.

Have a Backup Plan

Keep a set of index cards on which you have written activities, key points, and extras in case your engagement time runs longer than the material you prepped.

First and Last

Prepare the lesson so the key points are at the beginning and at the end. It's a proven fact that information is what is remembered best, not the middle.

Group Participation

If the lesson allows, set up time for your group to break up into pairs or smaller groups to study or work on a project. Peer group participation is not only fun, it helps break up the speaking and allows for a broader understanding of the information.

Encourage Questions

You will get a better understanding of their level of understanding and can adjust accordingly. No question is a dumb one ;)

No-one Left Behind

Sometimes we can find ourselves focusing on those who are actively participating and leave the quiet ones in the proverbial dark. Try to engage everyone, and ask questions of the quiet ones. Allow everyone to have equal time to speak, participate, and question.

Be Flexible

You have your entire presentation set up, laid out, and practiced. But when you are working with a group of varying individuals, the ship can veer off path. Pe prepared for this, and remember that as long as you keep to the subject in some way you are doing things right.

Praise

Give encouragement and praise. It boosts morale and engagement in a big way!

Have Fun!

This kind of goes along with passion, but is a bit broader. Enjoy your time there, you have to be there anyway, might as well have fun! And make sure to smile. It relaxes everyone and helps uplift the mood. I even smile when I am teaching online, and writing informative articles or correspondence. It makes a huge difference!

Learning takes many forms. Ask for comments after your presentation so you can see how well it was received and what you can do better. There is always room for improvement! The best instructors are lifelong learners. And remember: when the student is ready the teacher appears. You can instruct a person all day but if they are not ready for the information it will not be kept. Do not let that get you down. Do not give up, simply understand.

Have a wonderful week my friends!

Images via Giphy and Creative Commons

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