"Lace hand-holding would be: sit by the beginner and say "Now move that bobbin to there, and this bobbin to here."
*** Maybe I am visual, as I see hand-holding as someone literally or figuratively: taking another's hand/s in one's own and saying (some version of) "I know you can do this!" Occasionally, it may mean doing more steps for some, but for most, simply encouragement is enough. People come to learn with their own "tools" and as in life; some think they have a lot but may not when tested, some come with a few, knowing they will need more This is often based upon how the personality or ego interprets their aptitudes based upon real, inflated or damaged prior experience. The teacher's job quickly becomes dealing with these fractures, when they simply want to teach a technique and share their passion to bring bliss to another. Those who teach know the demanding, the needy, or bleeding without question, etc. students, that take up time and attention. The larger percentage just came to learn, will put it upon themselves to draw upon their resources, and ask the teacher only when they realize they have none, or that that lack will slow or stop their progress (yes a few ask up front so they can be on with it). A hand-hold student may be the one that requires you to do it all, but a good teacher won't. A good teacher sees what a student needs and an insecure student requires someone to speak to them with an open heart and tell them that they believe in them and their potential. Otherwise we are engaging in the drama and no one progresses in learning the subject (nor on a personal level.) I think Myers Briggs is an apt tool in this discussion, also. If you are an ISTJ or an ENFP or somewhere in the middle reflects your processing, personality and whether you do or don't understand others who are different, or how to convey information and communicate within another's functioning. There are online tests for this (though most say only professional testing is true. This can be done by an employer or psychologist or similar.) The best one online used to be free, but I think charges $5 now (or one needs to set up a password now?) and researching some of this you may find profound insight. http://www.personalitypage.com/ We foster a left-brain dominate society and right brain is less lauded, but ideally one does not dominate over the other and rather functions interdependently and harmoniously. These are those who are high functioning and make stellar contributions, simply stated. I remember over a dozen years ago, joining a knitting list, and was amazed at people who stated, "I always that, and I never this." They assumed that when they first knit and their purl rows were loose (or the converse), or that they hated doing a particular technique, that that was just the way it was (and always would be). It never struck them that with a bit of focus or practice, that their knits and purls could match throughout, and at the beginning and ends of the rows...that with perseverance, they could learn to love a technique they first thought they hated. Sometimes I think the old days of re-doing your work if there was a mistake, things not coming too easily creating a fire in your belly to persevere, etc., are becoming lost. Our push-button society has factored into our lessened satisfaction of things well earned and if not for us, surely for many who will follow. Fostoring this adaptability and tenacity, will make lacemaking endure. Last night I taught a class and made a comment about people feeling they were too busy; that some things are a priority and that we have more time than we think with all of our modern conveniences (and our learned perspective of "not enough" makes us think something that isn't true.) A woman's comment was that she WAS busy (she has a high powered job and manages at least 3 dozen people, has 3 kids, etc.) Well, I stated, if you had to grow the wheat, harvest it, dry it, grind it, bake the bread, and do it all over again, as just one of your chores for the day required to feed your family in part...she laughed and said it was true. A gentleman on another list expressed frustration over wanting to spend more time doing his needlework technique and it came through clearly that he felt that women had much more time to do it than he did. I stated that we get much done with grabbed minutes throughout the day. Rarely do people have time to sit blithely on their bottoms eating bon bons and doing their needlework for hours at a time. A stitch or two or more, is grabbed while waiting for something to boil, talking on the phone, or even at a stoplight. I digressed... :-) Best, Susan Reishus - To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] containing the line: unsubscribe lace [email protected]. For help, write to [email protected]. Photo site: http://community.webshots.com/user/arachne2003
