Spey classses / "D loop" / Spey-O-Rama

Hello Gordy,

Bob Hansell was assisting in the spey class that started this question of, ‘what should I have done in this situation’, and the following is

his first hand response.

He makes several great points, and really gets to the heart of the matter.

He and I will be doing a casting class in Ga. at the Conclave and I can see we should get together well in advance to really gel, and make it

a great class.

Bob brings up several times that I need to slow down, and also to practice slowing down….I can see that as very important and will work on that.

He brings in several other great teaching points that I think we can all learn from. He said it would be okay to share it with the group. Feel free to

Edit any of the small talk we shared.

In another message Al put out he spoke of the ‘Figure of Eight’ and the motion to get familiar with the turning of the wrist as well as getting away from

The straight line…I really liked that.

Thank you for getting every one to address this,

You guys are the best,

Rene

From: rjhesse [mailto:rjhesse@xxxxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Saturday, March 20, 2010 7:11 PM
To: Rene Hesse (GA)
Subject: Fw: Sunday

----- Forwarded Message ----
From: Bob Hansell <rhansell@xxxxxxxxx>
To: rjhesse <rjhesse@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Fri, March 19, 2010 8:33:27 AM
Subject: Re: Sunday

Rene,
Sorry for the delay in my response. Very busy work week that ended in a presentation to all the US Bottler heads that went extremely well. Spent a lot of time energy and emotion so I was completely absorbed,

I will take the gloves off and tell you the good, the bad and the ugly for my perspective.

First the good.

You were prepared well and gave a clear explanation of the class and how you were going to proceed.
The location was good, especially with the big puddle which gave each participant the chance to feel and see the effects of "on the water" versus on the grass
Your explanations of the "how to". It is a strength of your teaching.
Using the props. You are the best in our group at this. It was just not the fish this time; your use of props gives your students a better understanding of the fishing situation

Improvement opportunities:

Slow down. You are a gifted caster, but your motions are quick. Good for showing the effects of the line or cast, but hard to see the technique. I was doing a lot of hands on to give the students what it feels like because they could not see your hands and other motions well. This was clear to me when you did the circle back move. I think two things here would help you. First, go out in the yard, do some casts, but only watch your hand; not the cast. Then see how slow you can do the task. That should give you a new perspective.
Slow down. I could not keep up with the casts while helping. I would work with someone on your current topic. Before I could get to the next person, you moved on to a new build on the topic or a new cast. Here is a thought to consider: Is the class for you or is the class for the student? We all like to have an agenda as teachers, but we all like to learn as students. My best teachers and coaches helped me progress as opposed to telling me to keep up. I must admit, most of my teach hours have been one on one and you can hone in on a student better than a group of students. My impression was you had a couple of students that get it and some that could not keep up. When I worked with Peter and Bill on the AFFC 6 week casting clinics, we did a task, split the group up by skill and divided to bring the students along based on their skill and their pace. That is a drag on the agenda, but more "student friendly" .
Slow down. I have been to four or five of your classes. You keep on time at each which is impressive. But again, is it for you or the student? I have found that 1 or 2 casting situations is the most you can effectively teach in 1 session, regardless of the skill level of the student. I did 4, 2 hour lessons before I got the haul on a roll cast correct. Peter was frustrated and so was I, but we finally got it by Peter using different teach techniques. He demonstrated; I did not get it. He explained the mechanics; I did not get it. He pantomimed: I did not get it. Finally he did hands on: I got it! Again, this is a one on one program, but you and I could of explored more learning styles during the session. The real message here is change the agenda to the students ability to get it and then move on.

The ugly: It was a cold and windy day. Nothing you could do but you did make the most of it.

I wrote the above with a central theme of slowing down. You are a good teacher and a very good caster. A simple adjustment will elevate your level of teaching. I would suggest you begin each class the way you do with the agenda. Then add this simple question: "What would you like to get out of this class?" If the answer is awareness, keep doing what you have on the agenda. If the students tell you something different than your thinking when you came to the class or want to focus on one objective; then adjust the agenda. On Gordy's posts, there is a focus and rightly so, on the lesson plan. But the plan is to get you prepared. The class moves with the students ability to learn. There is an old saying: "God laughs at us when we plan". Better teachers adjust their styles to the students. Students do not adjust there learning to the teacher's style.

Now the disclaimer: I am a student of casting as well. This is just my perspective of last Sunday. I will be glad to discuss any topics on casting and teaching with you if you like. I would rate Sunday as A for the topic, A for the set up and C+ for the transfer of knowledge. I do not know if you agree. And, finally, please know that I respect you as a fellow teacher and have a different style. I know I can improve and I am open for suggestions. So please tell me if you disagree with my messages so I can learn as well. I am a firm believer in there is "no gain in the comfort zone". Feel free to share this with anyone and know the spirit that I wrote this was as an opportunity to open the dialogue so we both grow.

Thanks you,
Bob

From:	rjhesse <rjhesse@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To:	Bob Hansell/US/NA/TCCC@TCCC
Date:	03/16/2010 10:39 PM
Subject:	Re: Sunday

Hi Bob,

Thanks again for being there for the casting session. If you were not there the students would have
really been at a loss. I also like the fact that we can bounce ideas off eachother on how to improve.
You have a good eye for evaluating casts and making the guys feel comfortable...I like your style.

When I came away from the class there was an inner struggle and I wanted to get your take on a few things.
I put a few of the questioins to Gordy and he asked to open the discussion to the group...feel free to comment on the
board but I'd really like to get more specific critique from you. You saw the whole thing develope, the conditions,
students, instructor...
I'll give my take and ask you to as well (okay to take the gloves off). I am a student too.

My take- Advertised right, got wrong student body for the subject matter.

Staged the students well with relation to water, voice/sound for instruction. (Was it hard to hear the words?)
I learn by watching so I tried to keep 'showing' the cast with the audio. Did the words match the action?

I didn't give enough of the 'why', 'when', and a lot of 'how' to do it. (You spoke of on the water and that
was a good idea to give them the true situation) I thought static would work better for the mechanics--debate?

When I had a student talking constantly- I jumped on him and asked him to do the task I had just presented
- it shup him up but I kind of felt bad about that because he had no clue.
Any methods you can think of to try next time?

When the class was not doing well with the dynamic roll cast, I moved on to the switch and that was worse as
could be expected. Then on and on with more just hopeing to get the ideas accross. They were never going
to get all of it but might pick up on something to try and focus on . Should I have just done a basic class?

Last, do you think teaching one cast or two casts would keep a group interested for 2 hours?

I like to watch others teach so I can say, 'I like this, I don't like that, I would do this less or that more'. I learn from it.
If you can get time to share your observations I would appreciate it, and again thanks for being there.
Your presence and assistance was really appreciated.

Regards,
Rene

From: Bob Hansell <rhansell@xxxxxxxxx>
To: Rene Hessee <RJHesse@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Fri, March 12, 2010 3:22:24 PM
Subject: Sunday

Do you need me on Sunday? be glad to help or stay out of the way.
Thanks,
Bob

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