<aside> 💡 Last week, I wrote a piece called #75 To-Don’t list for improv teachers.

I got two bits of feedback:

i) DON’T lists are too negative ii) I thought there was going to be 75 points

So anyway, here’s a list of 76 things you should do as an improv teacher.

</aside>

  1. Get there early and set up the room so it feels welcoming - whatever works for you, I put chairs in a circle and play fun music.
  2. Remember class sizes aren’t merely a financial consideration. They affect what you can achieve in a given time frame too.
  3. Greet new people and introduce yourself before the class begins.
  4. Encourage students to chat and learn each other’s names.
  5. Have a plan but don’t stick to it rigidly if the room needs something different.
  6. Teach what is there, not what you wish was there.
  7. Plan your class around a specific topic - ideally everything you subsequently do should feed into this idea.
  8. Think about appropriate warm-ups, exercises & scenic opportunities that support your theme.
  9. But it’s also ok to do an exercise just because you love it.
  10. People learn in different ways - make sure your exercises vary so people can learn by watching, learn by doing, learn by asking questions etc.
  11. Make your classes accessable to people of diverse backgrounds - not everyone grew up with the same shows and references.
  12. Start with a check-in about any boundaries and accommodations yours students might have.
  13. In fact, it’s best practice to check in with your students about their boundaries via email before they even step foot in class.
  14. Always share a boundary of your own to model the behaviour.
  15. Boundaries and accommodations can be physical (I don’t like people touching my hair, I can’t stand for long periods of time) or non-physical (I won’t do a scene about child birth, I’d prefer not to even see a scene about a messy divorce).
  16. Once you’ve set boundaries - address poor attitudes, offensive statements & bad behaviour in class when they happen.
  17. Give your students a clear way of stopping scenes they don’t feel safe to continue in. Like a time out gesture.
  18. If someone uses a time out, don’t stop the class to find out what’s wrong immediately. Move to a new scene and catch up with the student in question in a break, after class or via email.