Beginners course
Today was the start of a three week long beginners course comprising two coaching sessions followed by a one star assessment.
I was glad to have the opportunity to run a course for complete novices from start to finish and was determined to incorporate all of the good things I have seen other coaches do.
I felt a bit self conscious to begin with as, once we had everyone kitted out, I got them all gathered around on dry land and tried to demonstrate the elements of a good forward stroke before getting them all doing some air paddling. I think our regular club paddlers found this rather amusing (I picked up this particular coaching tool in the US). It was useful to do this before getting on the water, however, as it is much easier to explain when everyone is standing still and not drifting away. It also served as a useful warm up!
Once we got on the water we worked on the basics of forward and backwards paddling, and simply enjoying being out on the water.
Students: 9
Coaches: me plus one L2
Coaching hours: 2