In September, I shared that I’ve enrolled in the Tea Teacher Training course offered by Suzette Hammond of Being Tea. I’ll share my experience with each of the course modules at the end of each month. So far, it has been challenging and eye-opening. It has been a long time since I was in school! My journey to becoming a tea educator has only just begun, but I’ve already learned so much about myself and my goals.
Module 2: Creating a Sensory Playground
The second module focused on sensory engagement and why it is important in tea education. As a tea student, I already knew that I learned best by tasting, but I don’t think I knew exactly why. Suzette filled in those question marks with a thorough introduction to adult learning theory. At first glance, that might not seem to be related to tea at all. However, as tea educators, we need to understand how to help our students get the most out of our teaching.
Tea cannot be learned and felt properly only through reading and rote memorization.
Suzette Hammond
There was so much information packed into the workbook for this module. I loved that she included several different learning models and theories, along with resources for further reading. It was like I was back in psychology class! It was slightly overwhelming but in a good way. I definitely feel like what I learned will influence how I think about structuring classes in the future.
My private video session with Suzette was very insightful. The class I taught at the Chicago Tea Festival went well, but in hindsight, some issues kept it from being the best workshop it could be. We discussed some adjustments that I can keep in my teaching arsenal for the next time. Unfortunately, I was under the weather on the day of the group Zoom call. Thankfully the sessions are now being recorded so that we can watch them later if we need to.
I’m still working on finishing up my homework for this module. Our assignment is to create an outline for a sensory workshop involving something other than tea. Much easier said than done for a tea obsessive like me!
Do you prefer to learn about tea through sensory experiences? Tell me about it in the comments below!
Most definitely 🙂 It’s the sensory & energetic connection to the tea that really uplifts me. I especially love when I feel a tea either bring warmth in my chest like igniting a fire, or a cooling clarity to my mind. Sounds like a wonderful course you’re doing, thank you for sharing your experiences and learnings!