Lesson Format
Every lesson should follow the same simple format…
Play
In many respects, we can view our lessons in the same way that we view a story. Every good story has a beginning that sets the tone for the story, a middle that takes the reader on a journey, and an end that wraps it all up.
The beginning of a lesson provides an opportunity to get to know the students, assess their goals and motivations, provide a little background on yourself, build rapport and begin to develop some team spirit; all done whilst slowly assessing their physical abilities, on or off their snowboard.
Introductions
A positive first impression here is vital. The instructor should make the effort to create a professional appearance, show their face, smile and make eye contact where appropriate. A genuine smile helps to put people at ease and lets them know that you are willing to help. An open posture, with hands away from the mouth, arms and legs uncrossed, leaning slightly forward, will portray an image of approachability and openness.
Good eye contact shows interest in the students; however, it is natural to look away from others’ eyes from time to time; this helps the person feel comfortable. Note that there are cultural differences about eye contact, awareness of which will help avoid misunderstandings. Goggles, face masks and hair over the face are often a major barrier to open communication.
Using students’ names frequently during this process will help in remembering them and will provide a feeling of inclusion. Asking students questions about their lives will not only give some useful background detail, but will help them to feel at ease with the instructor – more on this in Building Relationships and Interacting with Guests.
Steer the conversation towards snowboarding at a suitable moment. Questions like this will help the instructor to build a reasonable picture of their students’ riding abilities:
“What trails have you been riding?”
“Are you making s-shaped turns on both your heel and your toe-edge?”
“Have you had a lesson before?”
This may lead to students revealing their goals for the lesson; however, the instructor should revisit these goals throughout the play stage, as you discover their actual abilities.
Warming Up and Analysing Abilities
For first-time snowboarders, a physical warm-up of some sort, off the board, is typically the next step. Simple games can be enough to get the blood moving or a few basic stretches/mobilising of the joints. Be sure to keep any stretches simple and easy to achieve; however, allow the students time to do their own stretches if they so choose. Also, be aware that some students may already be quite warm, especially if it’s hotter weather and they have just made the long walk from rentals or the car park in unfamiliar boots, carrying their gear.
While students are moving around, take note of their strength, coordination and balance, as this will help you to gauge the speed at which the lesson is likely to progress.
For those students that have snowboarded before, it is usually more beneficial to go and have fun with some riding that they are capable of already. If set up well, this allows time to warm-up the body and provides the instructor an opportunity to assess their snowboarding abilities. When doing this, use terrain that the students are VERY familiar with. Stick to things they know already, even if it’s just a floating leaf, and provide a few small reminders when the moment arises.
With students that are linking turns comfortably already, ensure that they have time to find their rhythm in the terrain they are comfortable with. For the instructor, this is an opportunity to visually analyse the students’ riding abilities and consider any major inefficiencies they may have – see Intro to Rider Analysis.
Determining Motivations and Establishing Goals
At varying points throughout the play stage, we can begin to delve into our students’ motivations. Exactly when this happens depends on the situation, ability levels and number of people in the lesson.
For first-time snowboarders, asking a simple question whilst learning everyone’s names such as: “What made you want to try snowboarding?” may suffice. Answers such as this help you to build an understanding of why they are in your lesson:
“My wife is crazy about snowboarding.”
“My dad wants me to do it.”
“I’m going on a holiday to Japan next year and want to keep up with my friends.”
Once we have established our students’ most simple motivations, we can combine this with our analysis of their riding/physical abilities to set realistic, achievable and measurable goals. We can set goals that are common to the group as well as the individual. This depends on the similarity of the group’s technical ability and the length of time you have with them.
It is often difficult to balance the student’s goals with the instructor’s goals, e.g. a student who wants to jump (their goal), but cannot turn yet (our goal). The student’s goal is not yet realistic, but it is our job to keep them inspired and interested while making small steps toward their goal.
A seemingly unachievable goal can be broken down into a series of smaller achievable goals and adapted to the lesson. For example, a student would like to learn how to turn, but first they must learn to be comfortable with one-footed mobility, stopping on both edges, and moving across the hill, before the overall goal can realistically be achieved.
Assessing Terrain and Planning the Lesson
Combining the student’s goals and motivations, with knowledge of the terrain available, will help to formulate a plan for the lesson.
We may have one student or six, but we must cater to all. Try to construct a plan that progresses in linear steps initially, but has a degree of flexibility. Keep it simple and pace it according to the group’s needs. Be flexible enough to change the lesson plan depending on the individual needs of the group.
If an instructor sets strict timelines for their students, they could very well set them up for disappointment if the goals are not achieved. Discuss what is achievable within the lesson, rather than when they will achieve it.
Terrain choice is extremely important during any lesson. The incorrect choice can easily deter students from learning, limit their confidence through an increase in fear, or it may simply be unsuitable for what the instructor is trying to teach them. It is essential to use appropriate terrain, which best suits the level of the students and the current activity.
This stage of the lesson should come to an end when the students are warmed up, relaxed with the instructor and other members of the group, and there is a plan for where to go next. Before beginning the Skill & Adventure stage of the lesson, consider where the students are at within Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs.
Example
Skill & Adventure
This is the stage of the lesson where new skills and movements are introduced, and those skills are put into action around the mountain.
This stage generally takes up 80% or more of lesson time. Establish strong and stable foundations from which to build, then spend time exploring and enjoying putting those skills into action.
The skill aspect of this refers to the introduction of new movement patterns and techniques. The adventure aspect provides guidance for mileage and exploration, adapting the new skill to different environments. These two parts of this stage align well with the cognitive and associative stages of learning – see The Stages of Skill Acquisition.
Introducing New Skills
The majority of the content in this manual is focused on sample progressions designed to help introduce new skills to students.
Within the Play stage of the lesson, time has been spent assessing abilities, establishing goals and planning the lesson. The instructor should have a good idea which new skills are best suited to their current students, keeping the concept of Safety-Fun-Achievement at the forefront of that decision.
Introducing these new skills in the best way possible takes years of teaching experience and will change from lesson to lesson. Here are a series of steps to follow whilst gaining that experience as an instructor…
Checking for Understanding
After any new information has been presented, we must check for understanding. It’s beneficial to use open questions like: “Can you show me that movement before we start off?” or “Can you describe some feelings or pressure points from the new movement?”
We can even address these questions to specific individuals: “Jane, can you tell me how we use our hips differently when balancing on our toe edge?”
If checking for understanding verbally isn’t quite enough, we can always check visually by watching to see if they perform the task you have set up. Allow some time for initial practice so students have the opportunity to feel the new movements for themselves.
Mileage Through Adventure
We are now looking to apply and develop the new skills in varying terrain, grow confidence and explore the outskirts of the student’s comfort zone. The structure of this remains completely flexible and should have an element of unpredictability, taking twists and turns along the way, and is often determined by the needs of each student. Mileage through adventure provides an opportunity for constant guided practice.
Here’s a few easy things to include:
Throughout this stage, it is critical that we continue to provide feedback. There are varying types of feedback, but the most important thing is to keep it simple and constructive.
Summary
Every lesson ends with a summary!
Summaries should provide a brief recap of the lesson and reiterate the most important things for the students to take away. This is likely to differ for each student in your group.
Review with Reflection
Whether the goals have been completely reached or not, be sure to recognise your students’ achievements, however small they may be. Offer advice on where and when to practise for the rest of the day, over the coming days or whenever they expect to snowboard next. This can be a good opportunity to re-evaluate their goals.