Training ​

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                                                                                  New for 2023-24

 

Great instructing is what we always try to provide to our customers. It creates better experiences for our guests, increases return business, improves safety, and generates positive social media. We use the teaching system called "Visible Ski Moves".

 

Visible Ski Moves will also be used for our training and teaching with our new automated video system.                                                                

                                                   

                                               Clinics

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Taking the indoor and outdoor clinics on Visible Ski Moves will improve your position on the list of available instructors, and there will be additional pay for your privates. ( $5 would be 11percent)

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Other clinics will be for individual programs: student lessons, Kindersparks, Superstars, and Discover Michigan. You will sign up to teach entire programs, and then take the clinic for that program. Most of the programs are six week long except for a new three week long student lesson program and Discover Michigan which is four weeks. Teaching a student lesson pays the same as teaching a private lesson, you are guaranteed three or six weeks of pay, and work with the same students.

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Most clinics will have an indoor and outdoor session. The indoor clinics are a flipped classroom approach where you watch a video and answer some questions, then go through the class in person.

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You will be paid $20 ??? to attend a clinic.  

  

Here are the clinic signups. Coming soon

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                                                         New Instructors

                                                                                                   

After the hiring clinic, first year instructors will begin a process of teaching each other and providing feedback as was done in the hiring clinic.

 

You will teach other new instructors who will be providing feedback. Then you switch roles and give feedback to other new instructors. You will be paid $20 per clinic.

 

About the third week of December, you may start teaching customers depending on your progress and the level of demand. 

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                                           Great instructing

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Teaching will be more fun if you constantly strive to improve your teaching. Focus on what customers need rather than having a set plan of what you teach. Progress will be different for every person.

 

It is important to have fun and build great relationships, but if you teach effective lessons, there is a better chance they will want to become skiers.

 

Constantly evaluate how your students are doing, are they having fun or are they bored because you are going too slow? Are you going too fast and creating fear? If you can't tell ask them, and encourage them to let you know what they want.

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By going at the proper pace you will give them the skills they need to handle more challenging terrain, remember 'turns before terrain".

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Great teaching takes a combination of: self awareness, attention to your students needs, personality, energy, a fun attitude, physical ability, confidence, and knowledge to respond to the unique physical and emotional needs of each student. You may also have to shape their expectations by helping them understand that improving is a process that will take time and practice.

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When you get returning customers, keep notes of what you did and what you want to work on for the next time. Always seek to improve your teaching and review every lesson for what went well or could have been done better.

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We have a strong emphasis on teaching beginners because it takes a lot of knowledge and skill to teach great beginner lessons. You can have a big impact on someone giving them a lifetime of fun and adventure.

                                      

                                            Self/Peer evaluation 

 

You can used this to assess yourself or do a peer review with a friend

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1- Appearance- clean school jacket, name tag, and helmet

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2- Speaks loud, makes eye contact, smiles, pleasant, confident, fun

 

3- Checks clothes and equipment, asks if cold or if feet hurt

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4- Asks questions of parents and/or student about goals and athletic background, encourages them to ask questions, focus on their needs  

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5- Provides clear goals and specific feedback. At the end tells them what is next, thanks them, invites them back, and schedules their next lesson if they would like to do it right away. Tells them where the restrooms and cafeteria is at. 

 

Teaching skills

 

All levels

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1- Pays attention to students and sets the pace based on their performance, not too fast or slow, asks if unsure, not a set plan, different tasks for each student if needed in semi private

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2- Provides a clear explanation and then specific feedback during or after performance especially for athletic stance, physically assisting when necessary, makes good demos. Always tells them to start in an athletic stance before every run, knows "Ski Moves" verse natural moves

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3- End lessons by telling them to ski in control and not hit anyone, reviews what to practice, where to ski and to gradually go higher when they can link turns and turn to a stop.

 

Beginners

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1- Before using the lift- walking, static exercises, athletic stance, side step, straight run, assistance using lift support at hips, proper spacing, support on and off rope and setting up to ski 

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2- Gliding wedge in athletic stance, bouncing on toes with chest over toes, touching knees, wedge change up, wedge stop, controls speed with T bar if icy or pushes if snow is slow, has students ski down next to carpet as soon as exiting, works with skis off when necessary, uses other tools like wedge maker, forward lean tool, and ski ring if necessary

 

3- Gliding wedge turns: in athletic stance, narrow wedge, with speed, slight turn, straight, then turn other way. Point big toes or push on big toes or combine. Specific number of big and small turns, turn to a stop at the end. Can see when knee is moved inside verse flexing the ankle, or if the hip move outside and flattens the ski, or if the knee is flexed rather than the ankle. Not doing: just one turn to a stop, starting in a traverse, skiing too slow, turning too far across the hill, or rushing from one turn to the next. Makes sure they know how to take off skis off, reset binding, and put on    

 

Intermediates

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1- Warm up run, evaluate, review athletic stance and wedge turns, explain chair use if needed, work on matching and pole use

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2- Use the "Big 3" on a gentle slope with speed, in athletic stance with small wedge, make slight turns. Turns often become parallel. Outside hand to knee. If needed, do deliberate matching statically and fan exercise for the bottom part of the turn first. Or static step on outside ski and match the skis, then starting in a steep traverse link turns to work on matching in the first half of the turn.

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3- Add early weight transfer, down and up motion, pole swing and touch

 

Advanced

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1- Warm up, evaluate, review athletic stance, review pole use if necessary

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2-  Uphill christie for progressive ankle flex and tip( angulation) drills. Turning both feet for skidded turns for most students. Exercises for SWIFT, progressions, opposite/extremes.

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3- Adding variety, size, shape, speed, steepness, conditions, moguls, and park for those interested.

Smooth (continuous) flow over the feet while loading and unloading the skis, keep Big MO going downhill. Knows the "Ski Moves Image" when angulation ends to look for well timed ski moves.

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