Teaching Tarot

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 04 Jan 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

Kiama	04 Jan 2002
Well, I want to teach Tarot. I have experience in teaching First Aid, Manual Handling, ad BSL to people both younger and older than me. I also have a venue. However, that is where I get stuck. Is it legal for me (Under 18) to be teaching the Tarot? With the other teaching, it was through St John Ambulance, so I was allowed, butI have no actual certificates to prove I am qualified to teach. How would I go about getting people on the course? What should I charge? What do I teach them first? Will older people take me seriously? I have no experience planning or organising these things: Just teaching them to people. Kiama

Lilliana	04 Jan 2002
Hi Kiama, Sorry I can't answer all your questions, but it might be an idea to investigate community adult education centres. I'm not sure if you have these where you are (you're in england, right?), but if you do, you could try and start a course through one. If you contact one with a course idea and they like it, they will set the whole thing up for you. Including promotion, enrolments, payments and pretty much everything else (all you have to do is show up on the day and teach). The one in my area offers courses on everything from computers to languages to new-age matters and art. Good luck :) Lilli

scorpio	04 Jan 2002
kiama do you have any new age bookstores where you are moving? we have a handful in town that offer a variety of services. one store has a free class the first tuesday of the month called tea tarot and theresa and she covers basics and all the major cards then we split up into informal groups and play. and some of the stores offer a single to four part class that they charge aroung $10 usd per person for each class. good luck i suspect a leo here and ya just gotta have a stage if your a leo! do tell also how you like your new golden dawn its one of my top five favorites

blue	04 Jan 2002
Kiama; Scorpio is right, a new age book store might be a good place to start. The one near me has classes all the time. In regards to your qualifications, if any one questions them have them contact me. I’ll vouch for you!

tarotbear	05 Jan 2002
I approached Adult Education or Continuing Education here in the states - which is where I have always taught it. Let me warn you- at least here in the USA- you have to contact them now about a class in the fall, since they make up their schedules and whatnot up to a year ahead of time. Even if you get in the catalog, you have to meet a minimum number of students, so there is no guarantee you will have a class up to the day the class is supposed to start.

Major Tom	05 Jan 2002
Kiama - There's some good suggestions in Adult Education and New Age bookstore - but your question made me think... Professional qualifications...a certificate to hang on the wall behind your head like the doctor in the surgery.... I know there's a Tarot Association or some such in America that offers some sort of certification...but I'm completely unaware of any operating in England or elsewhere for that matter. Anyone know of any? If not - why don't we start one. }>

jmd	05 Jan 2002
I do not see why there should be a legal problem with you teaching Tarot... but I am not in the UK. I do think, however, that your age may work a little against you... Instead of setting out to teach a course as such, it may be worth considering setting up a Tarot study group... run by yourself, of course. In many ways the two are similar, except that the expectations people have of you are different: in the latter, they expect to do far more work than just being 'fed'. This will also give you valuable experience to run a 'proper' course later. Personally, I value the incredible contributions made by sometimes Tarot novices. I remember a PhD student making suggestions about certain meanings in ancient Greek which certainly illumined various discussions in the group. As mentioned above, I too would recommend Adult Education/Community Centres, and University Student Association Learning centres (they go under numerous names)... and don't forget to advertise in local papers and bookshops!

DeLani	05 Jan 2002
Kiama, I would agree with jmd to maybe start with a study group, and from that, later using the format and insights you gained from that to create a syllabus. Your age shouldn't really be a legal problem; however, some people who are older than you might not believe that you have enough life experience to impart such esoteric knowledge. So I guess what I'm saying is that it might be more of a PR thing than a legal thing. And there is some sort of international Tarot association: www.tarotsociety.org. So check with any other Tarot teachers in your country to check what "certifications" you have to have to teach. Here in the US, you don't necessarily have to have any certification to teach. Which is good, because I have ethical conflicts with the Tarot Certification Board (they make you promise that you will never tell clients that something bad will happen to them...) So, I hope this helps and good luck. DeLani

cj	05 Jan 2002
Kiama, I think you have the knowledge and the experience to teach..the advise I would give, is don't mention your age..no one needs to know that much about you. I wish you luck and wish you were here so I could take the course (poor me LOL) cj

Kiama	06 Jan 2002
Unfortunately, there are no spiritual or new age stores or shops around where I am, except for one which is too small to swing a cat, let alone seat fifteen-ish people comfortably! *Sigh* I found out that it doesn't matter how old I am, or if I have qulaifications, cuz this course won't be one of those 'exam at the end to gain a certificate' courses. Thanks for all you input. At the moment, I've got all these ideas in my head, and I'm really excited: Its just the planning. I know where to advertise, that certainly won't be a problem, its just getting the courage to acually go ahead and do this. Teaching or study group? Well, when I teach its a very interactive thing. I suppose one can't really call it teaching, merely intiating responses and discussion. Besides, I can't see how you can stand up and talk, talk, talk about a certain card, without having a group discussion! The last thing I wanna do is have the learners buried under lecture notes, or without any of their ideas: That's not how Tarot should be learned. Its a personal thing, so the 'classes' will be very much 60% them, 40% me. I'm also considering doing one evening on decks, and all the different ones around, for those of them who don't already have one, or are thinking of getting a new one. And I might also include the book 'Living The Tarot' by Amber Jayanti in the price of the course, cuz I found this book one of the most inspiring and helpful around. And its not too expensive! (2.99 pounds sterling). Next question: What sort of things should be covered in a 10 week study group? Should I go as far as Qabalah/Astrology/Numerology associations? Unfortunately, the Adult Education centre where I am will not let me teach, cuz I'm not technically an adult myself. So, I'll probably be going freelance. I can do advertising and organising the venue on my own (Well, a little bit of help from my Dad who's good at this organisation stuff won't go amiss). Oh, oh, nearly forgot: Should there be a minimum age for the people to be? I am hesitant to put one on, considering I'm only 17, but what if there are some really young people who maybe aren't as mature as the older ones? How do I work that one out? And how do I (A small, and obviously 17-looking girl) hide my age, or answer somebody who asks me how old I am? I do look quite young... But I sound old. Oh dear, so many questions.... Kiama

Luned	06 Jan 2002
Quote: Major Tom (05 Jan, 2002 20:23): I know there's a Tarot Association or some such in America that offers some sort of certification...but I'm completely unaware of any operating in England or elsewhere for that matter. Anyone know of any? There's a Tarot Association of the British Isles, it's newish - http://www.tabi.org.uk/ The newsletter PDF on the front page has some interesting articles in it. Luned (downunder, not in the UK)

january	06 Jan 2002
Quote: Kiama (07 Jan, 2002 06:28): And how do I (A small, and obviously 17-looking girl) hide my age, or answer somebody who asks me how old I am? I do look quite young... But I sound old. Oh dear, so many questions.... Kiama Kiama, I've read just about all of your posts and always look forward to being stimulated by your insights and ideas. Hence, if you speak as intelligently as you write (and I get the vibe that you do!), I don't think that anyone will be concerned with your age. They will see you as plethora of knowledge and be eager to learn and grow with you. I was, in fact, surprised to learn you were 17! As far as expanding your syllabus into astrology/numerology and other esteric stuff, maybe you should save that for later. As a beginner (studying only 4 months) I was more concerned with learning the cards and spreads. From your first "semester" you'll learn how to structure future classes. Its really hard to gauge what your students' learning level will be. You could have a mix of absolute newbies and intermediate readers. But at least you'll have the answers if someone asks. Then you could end up teaching two levels, Tarot 1 and Tarot 2, write a book someday :-) Good Luck - you'll be great! ~ january

bec	06 Jan 2002
As for setting an age-limit - why ? You could discharge a very mature 15-old and get a immature 40-old geezer instead. You´re 17 - you should now about being young and mature ;) I´m not sure if this will do you any good, but then at least you know it exist. http://www.tarotcertification.org/ Good fortune on your teachingplans :) I´m 30 and I wouldn´t mind having you teach me.

fairyhedgehog	06 Jan 2002
Kiama, this sounds so exciting! My suggestion would be to keep it inexpensive, at least at first. Maybe make it a 'special offer for the initial course' so that you can raise your prices next time, when you'll have a lot of people coming by word of mouth ;) Maybe not much more than covering your costs and 'pocket money' type fees, till you're established. Don't be defensive about your age. You've had more Tarot experience than many of us who are much older. I'd happily learn from you! How about letting people know how young you were when you started? That might put it in perspective for them. As for content, I'd advertise the first course as for Beginners, then it's a case of KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) :) It also means that people will easily believe you know more than them. You could teach a middle ability group after word of mouth has done its bit. Including a book in the course materials sounds like a fine idea to me. People will feel they are getting more than they expected and that has to be good. Anyway, just a few thoughts. I hope it all goes well for you and you get it off the ground. All the very best, FH

SR	06 Jan 2002
HI... THe rules vary by state...I live in NC, and here, you can only offer "self improvement courses" by state law. Any kind of school or institute I would want to set up would cost me $25,000 bond. Also, doing "readings" is technically illegal in this state. I'm not sure, but minority age is likely to be a problem as well. I would suggest two things. 1. Check out you state law thoroughly via internet searches and talking with knowledgel folks in your area. 2. You appear to be young yet. The Tarot is an ancient tool, not only for divination and games, it is also a serious initiatory tool for esoteric purposes. Check out my tarot web page, and see if your knowledge stacks up to the tone of what is presented. If it is foreign and difficult for you, I would suggest patience and perseverance! Warm Regards, and Fair Sailing! StaveRunner http://hermeticyoga.topcities.com/HYReferenceSheet1.html

bec	06 Jan 2002
great site SR !! I´m gonna put this link on my HP for studie sites - if you don´t mind ofcourse :)

tarotbear	07 Jan 2002
kiama,darling -- I talked about this in another thread. How much can you cram into a single evening? How many evenings will it take? This is what you have to figure out first--how much knowledge are you trying to give to others and how long does that take? I teach a two-hour class for 8 weeks--16 hours to teach 78 cards- and that's speaking at a fast clip! You have to present your material, let them take notes, write it down, process it, then ask you questions that you have to answer. Think about this. In my first class I have to give them some background in some Tarot history, talk about the cards - then I do the first half of the Majors. The second week, I teach the Aces, Twos, and Threes. Third week I finish the Majors. That brecks down to roughly 12 minutes -tops per card. And you want to teach them how many perifierial things to go with the cards? It's a lot easier than it sounds - really. But TOO MUCH INFORMATION will kill your classes and overpower your students.

Jewel	07 Jan 2002
Greetings Kiama, How wonderful that you are considering teaching :) One of the things that caught my eye in your original post was that you noted that you teach other things but are not sure of how to structure the material. I would like to recommend that first off you develop a basic curriculum to follow. The curriculum would then guide the flow of the classes down to each and every group/class discussion and help you manage class time efficiently and be able to replicate your class in the future (allowing for curriculum modification based on lessons learned). I also concurr with others that have commented on your post that you do not want to overwhlem your beggining students with too much esoteric information. I have been studying the Tarot and the Qabalah for several years now and all I have to say is that that would have to be a separate class in and of itself. In addition it would have to be taught at various levels, and if taken seriously will require several years in and of itself. I think it is essential that in your class you talk about the history of the Tarot, the elements (including the air/fire swords/wands debate), and the positioning Justice and Strength within particular decks. I also liked your idea about talking about different decks. That might be a great closing class, and there you might want to include how the Tarot has been tied/associated with other essoteric arts such as the qabalah but that that material is to in depth to be covered in such a small class and provide them with a reading list (which I am sure we could all pitch in and make some recommendations) for those students interested in learning more about the Tarot in association to other essoteric arts. Well that is my two pearls worth ;) Best of luck!!! Love & Light,

cj	07 Jan 2002
[quote]Kiama (05 Jan, 2002 06:42): Well, I want to teach Tarot. And when you have your 1st book published on Tarot and have taught classes around the world, Remeber us poor souls here at aeclectic... HEE HEE, can I make a suggestion on the book - The Complete Illistrated guide to Tarot by Rachael Pollack. This was the first book that grabbed me. It shows that Tarot does not have to be rw. and has an easy way to learn the minors (learn suite qualities then number qualities). It's faster and eaisier and leaves room for reading what you see on the card. Good luck and keep us posted. cj

Michelle	07 Jan 2002
Hi Kiama, I just talked with a lady in my area (I live in the U.S.) who teaches Tarot, she has been teaching for 15 years... I thought perhaps her course description may help you. It is a 5 month course, broken down into 4 week sessions, with a different focus each new session. You attend class once a week for 2 hours, and the cost is $10 per class. The first 4 sessions are the basics, she then moves on to color importance in Tarot, numerology basics ,etc. (I'm sure you get the idea) . I hope this helps you ! I am sure you will be a wonderful teacher. And I can tell you from experience..Tarot teachers are needed! Good luck on your journey. Love and Light, Michelle

The Teaching Tarot thread was originally posted on 04 Jan 2002 in the Talking Tarot board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Talking Tarot, or read more archived threads.