Should a person do to get enough knowledge and then try to do the NRA pistol and rifle instructor classes?

You can't put a number on it... people retain skills differently and some simply are not cut out to teach.  Knowledge of shooting skills and the ability to watch a shooter and spot problems so as to provide corrective feedback is something some people just are not good at regardless of how many classes they take.  TEACHING is an art and a skill.

You will have OUTSTANDING instructors who have taken few commercial classes whereas you will have same who have taken many... on the flip side, you will have instructors with a list a mile long but just suck as an instructor.

ETA- I am a firm believer though that a person who intends to instruct should attend a few courses initially AND continue to do so throughout their career as an instructor.  There are many ways to skin a cat in the shooting world because not all of us shoot the same way or adopt the same shooting mechanics.  While the basics are a good foundation in which to build upon, some shooters doo well defying the principles of the basics.  Thus you have "instructors" trying to correct what they feel are "issues/problems" when a shooter is doing just fine.

Thanks I just found out that there really is nothing special about the NRA instructor class. so I am going to take it and see what happens. I plan on training with everyone. So I can learn from everyone and use what works for me to be a instructor. I just want sure what tests are involved with the instructor classes. there isnt a lot of information out there.

I took the NRA Pistol Instructor class after having only taken one civilian handgun carry permit / armed security guard license class about 2 years prior and a hunter's safety class almost 20 years prior. And, the carry permit / rent-a-cop class was taught by a blow-hard ex cop who'd been unwillingly retired from the PD, but spent about half of the 16 hours regaling the class with tales of his daring-do. To give you an idea as to the quality of instruction he presented, I submit to you this picture of him teaching another class:



Other than that horrible experience, most of my previous instruction was either at the hands of my Dad, a retired USAF vet and retired Deputy Sheriff, in the military, or through self-experience. The NRA Instructor classes are very easy. If you can understand the basic principles of marksmanship, the basic rules of safety, apply them yourself, and are capable of explaining them to students who may learn differently than yourself, you'll be fine.

Heck, some of the other students in my NRA Pistol Instructor class were barely capable of walking and breathing concurrently, yet they still passed. One lady, the wife of a prominent local gunsmith who builds awesome 1911's, was taking the class so she could serve as an RO at IDPA or IPSC matches. Yet, she had no idea what rifling was, or what function it had. Two other students were taking the class as a requirement for security guard supervisor jobs, as required by the contract their fly-by-night rent-a-cop company was signing with a client. They showed up with POS guns they'd bought literally the day before. Their range bags? The plastic Wal-Mart sacks which held the ammo, eyes, and ears they'd bought the night prior. One of the requirements of the class is to demonstrate proficiency shooting a handgun. One of the wannabe rent-a-cops had a 4" S&W 10 or 19 (it's been 8 1/2 years, I can't remember which it was) and couldn't hit an 11" paper plate at 5-7 yards. In fact, his trigger squeeze was so bad, he was missing it by more than 5'. I eventually loaned him my 4" 686, which has had a beautiful trigger job done on it, and he was finally able to hit the plate.

its a combination of everything....study, actively shooting, finding new adaptive forms of training, taking classes...etc

no set numbers......

Thanks, I was looking into NRA courses and this helps.