Twelve Fundamentals
Book Study Club
with Penelope Easten
If you're reading my book
this club is for you
For teachers and students of:
Alexander technique, yoga, Pilates, Feldenkrais,
movement therapies, tai chi and martial arts,
runners, swimmers and athletes, riders, golfers, skiers,
sports and fitness people,
musicians and singers, actors, performers and dancers,
somatic therapists, massage therapists and physios,
and anyone who wants optimal movement patterns.
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This is more than just another book! There are seven bold new concepts that underlie truly integrated movement
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This book gives you new tools to explore and understand them - take your experience of movement to a different level
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Don't just read about these revolutionary techniques. Learn to live them and teach them to others
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The club gives you ongoing support as you absorb and explore the book
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Attain greater expertise, a strong springy body and calm, confident presence
Deepen your understanding
Learn to live the Alexander technique
Develop your self-work and authentic voice
Refine your teaching
The next free introductory seminar will be
Thursday 2nd May 2024
Seminars at 9am and again at 6pm UK time,
(runs for 75 minutes)
Email us at [email protected] to book your place
3 minute video about the Book Study Club
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Regular seminars
with Penelope
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Live seminar every two weeks to support your learning
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Ask all your questions, discuss the ideas and clarify your understanding
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Work through the explorations live in the seminars with Penelope
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Get practical guidance and coaching on doing or teaching the explorations
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Connect with other readers and explorers
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All sessions are recorded on a secure link, sent to all club members
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Attend in person or watch the recording later
Group members can
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Be matched with a study buddy to work through the explorations together
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Improve your functional anatomy knowledge
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Assess your understanding of each chapter with quizzes and questionnaires
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Join the private Facebook group for sharing and questions
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Share in Penelope's latest discoveries, thoughts and tips
“The book club is a great way of focusing on the material and putting it into practice in a more disciplined way. Penelope always takes time to answer all questions and untangles any misunderstandings in a kind and precise manner. Love being part of this book club and would recommend it to everyone who has bought the book!” Marja Bennett, Sweden
You will discover
How to find your quiet presence to enable deep change.
Find your natural breathing - brilliant for opening tight spines and accessing muscles that have gone off-line.
How to find direct access to the self-organising power of the nervous system
- to free up muscles and joints
- to stay toned and strong
- to regain innate movement patterns
Learn how to unlock your own habitually tight muscles
Plus discover how not to get drawn into your computer!
For teachers and therapists:
Discover and practice a new way of working with your students or clients
The book is a toolbox of proven techniques that work, in person and online, with individuals and groups. Use it to form the basis of a whole course of study for your students, or a wealth of tips to draw on for specific issues.
By mastering these techniques for yourself, you can confidently deliver to your paying clients. You will hone your skills by working with your study buddy and practice students. This gives an opportunity to play with the techniques and find your own way of using them.
Using these skills you can discover a deeper resonance with students and clients, making sessions more satisfying for you both.
AT teachers and trainees
Deepen your understanding of the core principles behind hands-on and hands-off work
Learn to guide others through these self-help procedures – invaluable for hands-off work with individuals or groups
Your pupils will finish each lesson understanding what they have learnt and able to apply it for themselves
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Have more tools and procedures at your fingertips
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Learn better observation skills
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Increase your clarity of intent of what is needed in any moment
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Improve your verbal guidance skills
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Find your embodied voice for better communication and trust
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Enhance your ability to stay present and deeply connected to the pupil
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Develop your dialogue with pupils enabling them to discover the technique for themselves
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Option to work towards a certificate in this way of working.
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Exclusive opportunity to purchase video series of Penelope teaching these techniques to pupils.
Course curriculum
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1
Preliminaries
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Welcome to the Book Study Club!
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A few formal points: copyright stuff, medical disclaimer and privacy policy.
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Short introductory survey - please do this first. Word version
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Short introductory survey - please do this first. Pages version.
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CE credits and completion certificates as you work through the Book Study Club
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Optional certification process
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2
Contents page - full list of all supplementary material
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Contents - list of supplementary material
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3
Chapter 2: What has been lost, and the twelve fundamentals of movement
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Chapter 2 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for Chapter 2 - assess your deeper understanding
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4
Chapter 3: fundamentals of structure
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Chapter 3 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 3 - assess your deeper understanding
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 3, and for working in person and online.
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Anatomy challenges : the superficial back and front lines
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Chapter 4: The fundamentals of awareness and thinking
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Chapter 4 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 4 - assess your deeper understanding
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 4
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Anatomy challenge: the brain/body intelligence network
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Chapter 5: the autonomic nervous system
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Chapter 5 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 5: assess your deeper understanding
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Chapter 6: Finding innate movements of breathing and walking
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Chapter 6 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 6: assess your deeper understanding
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Anatomy challenges, respiration
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Anatomy challenges - the thoracolumbar fascia and the abdominal cavity
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Anatomy challenges - the answers
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 6
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Chapter 7: Initial Alexander technique and a new model of postural alignment
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The revised lower body pulls (Mini-video course, video 1)
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Frequently asked questions about the pulls (Mini-video course, handout)
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Updated historical facts for Chapter 7
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Chapter 7 text changes. Directions for revised pulls in the explorations, plus textual additions
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 7, and more on unity line and the sticks
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Chapter 7 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 7: assess your deeper understanding
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4 anatomy challenges
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Anatomy challenge - body geometry points
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Answers to all anatomy challenges for chapter 7
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9
Chapter 8: single leg balance
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The revised pulls and the leg spirals (Mini-video course, video 2)
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Chapter 8 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 8: assess your deeper understanding
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 8
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Anatomy challenge - feet and deep hip rotators
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Anatomy challenge - the hip laterals, and the spiral and lateral lines
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Anatomy challenge answers
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Deep hip rotators - their anatomy and action
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Chapter 9: Spatial relationships and use of the upper body and arms
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Chapter 9: Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 9: assess your deeper understanding
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 9
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Anatomy challenge - the front and back arm lines and the thoracic muscles
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Bonus material - the intrinsic muscles of the hand, notes and anatomy challenge NEW
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Anatomy challenge - the bones and joints of the shoulder girdle, and the functional line
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Anatomy challenge answers
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Arm pulls and the biceps
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Chapter 10: toned sitting - integrating the core muscles
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Chapter 10 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 10: assess your deeper understanding
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 10
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Anatomy challenge - the deep front line
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Further stability from the psoas as we bend - new ideas
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Chapter 11: Walking as you've never walked before
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Revised pulls for chapter 11 explorations
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Chapter 11 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 11: assess your deeper understanding
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 11
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Anatomy challenge - deep front line in leg
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Posterior sling of body - image
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New thoughts on walking (9th July 2023)
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Chapter 12: Alexander's biomechanics for expansion of the upper body
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Chapter 12. Revised pulls in the explorations, plus textual additions
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Chapter 12 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 12: assess your deeper understanding
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 12
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Anatomy challenge - ribcage models
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Anatomy challenge - ribcage models - the answers
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Anatomy challenges- back arm lines and spiral lines in upper body & neck
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More thoughts on shoulders
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Chapter 13: Precise springy alignment in sit to stand and "monkey"
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Revised pulls for the explorations, and text additions for chapter 13
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Chapter 13 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 13: assess your deeper understanding
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 13
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Further stability from the psoas as we bend - new ideas
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Chapter 14: Freeing the neck and Alexander's primary directions
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Chapter 14 Quick Quiz
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Questionnaire for chapter 14: assess your deeper understanding
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 14
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2 Anatomy challenges - muscles of the neck
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The neck: new discoveries and further thoughts
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Exploring the muscle layers of the neck - NEW
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Chapter 15: Catching a ball - inhibition in action
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Questionnaire for chapter 15: assess your deeper understanding
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Chapter 15 Quick Quiz
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 15
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Chapter 16: New models of coordination and learning
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Questionnaire for chapter 16: assess your deeper understanding
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Chapter 16 Quick Quiz
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 16
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Chapter 17: Embodied speaking
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Questionnaire for chapter 17: assess your deeper understanding
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Chapter 17 Quick Quiz
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Practice exchange and teaching tips for chapter 17
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Chapter 18: Relating and attuning to people for putting hands on others
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Questionnaire for chapter 18: assess your deeper understanding
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Chapter 18 Quick Quiz
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Facilitator
Penelope Easten
Penelope’s story.
I initially read zoology at Cambridge university. I took my first lessons in 1983 and qualified in 1989 from the North London Alexander School (Misha Magidov). After training, my use fell apart, as no-one had taught me to work on myself. This took me to Miss Goldie, who stripped away everything I had learnt, and rebuilt it as she saw the technique should be - a scary process! I worked with her for four years, and that began a thirty-year journey to understand the differences and power of Miss Goldie’s amazing work. It has taken me to many other teachers – including Erika Whittaker, John Hunter, and Jeando Masoero, and to many avenues of exploration and understanding – both scientific and alternative. From age seventeen, I also battled with another 30-year journey - with chronic fatigue syndrome. This is now sorted, but after it I needed to rebuild tone and strength, and increased calm and resilience, which this work has enabled. I have been teaching workshops on Miss Goldie’s work since the Oxford Congress in 2004, in UK, Ireland (including the Limerick Congress), Germany and America. My book: The Alexander technique. The twelve fundamentals of integrated movement was published by Handspring Publishing in March 2021. After 19 years in the West of Ireland, I now live in Edinburgh with my husband and dog, and nearby to my daughter and small grandchildren. I am passionate to share this work that can bring us such renewed vigour, sense of youthful springiness and calm presence.
Email
“Penelope Easten’s book is brilliantly conceived and presented and I have found the ideas in it to be transformative, allowing me personally to make sense of the Alexander Technique in exciting new ways. If her book resonates with you, I cannot recommend her online book study group highly enough. Penelope runs the sessions superbly and always with her characteristic warmth, good nature and keen listening skills, answering any and all questions, whether they are about concepts from the book or teaching her approach to our students.” Larry Young, USA
FAQs
Q: When can I next join a group?
A: The next group will begin on Monday 13th May 2024
Q: When will seminars happen for this group?
A. On alternate Mondays at 5pm UK time
Q. How do I sign up?
A. Email p[email protected] to register your place, then you will be prompted to sign up in early May.
Q: Do I need to be there in person?
A: You can attend in person or watch the recording after.
Q. How long will seminars go on for?
A. Each seminar is 90 minutes long. So for UK time, they will be 5.00-6.30pm
Q. What times will this be in other time zones?
- Central Europe: 6pm
- Eastern Europe: 7pm
- South Africa: 6pm
- USA - EST: 12noon
- USA CST: 11am
- USA - PST: 9am
- Japan / Korea: 1am (2am Nov-Mar)
Q: Are there fixed hours to do the course?
A: Not at all. The only set times will be the online seminars (on zoom ) but those will be recorded for those who cannot attend in person.
Q: Can people join the course at any time?
A: In general, each study group begins together, though it is possible to join within a few weeks of the group's first seminar and catch up. In general, new study groups will form twice a year, in September/October and January/February. Please email Penelope to register interest in the next group forming.
Q: Do I get access to all the club curriculum at once?
A: The learning support is on a drip schedule of two or three weeks for each chapter so the material becomes successively available to you. This is to encourage you to explore each chapter fully and take time to play with it with your study buddy and practice pupil before moving on.
Q: What happens if I get behind? Now life is opening up again it has become much busier.
A: As long as you are subscribed to the club you have access to the material. So if you slip behind this schedule you can work through the material in your own time. If you store the seminar recording links there is no time limit to this.
Q: What happens if I do not understand something?
A: Bring all your questions to the seminars to discuss them with Penelope and the other participants. If you need support between seminars you can ask questions in the private Facebook group which often results in a lively discussion. Where needed for a private matter you can email Penelope directly. You can also post videos of yourself doing a procedure on the Facebook group for constructive comments and help.
Q: Will it run every other Monday all year round?
A: We will take a two week break in early August and two weeks at Christmas.
Loving your Book club! So well organised and with wonderful resources and support! Thank you for sharing your in-depth studies and experience. You are a wonderful listener and are able to communicate and help people whatever is thrown at you... and with no judgement... really admirable! Kay Cady