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QUIZ
QUESTIONS : -
1.) Do you teach the roll cast as one of the very first tasks for your new fly casting students ? Yes
2.) Briefly, tell us why. Because it is such an important cast in many ways, but for a beginner what come to mind more then anything else is to eliminate slack in the system in order to make a cast. Especially on water.
3.) Do you teach the PICK-UP-&-LAY-DOWN to your new students ? Yes
4.) Briefly, support your decision. Because it give a sequence of events that are needed for the fly cast, This cast implements all the essentials (Slack, Pause, Stroke, Power, and SLP) that are needed to make a fly cast.
5.) Include a brief outline of your lesson plan for the tasks described by Robin.
If your answered NO to 1.) and/or 3.) then submit an alternative lesson plan outline for your "brand new"students.
Include time (minutes devoted to each event.
6.) Add commentary on how you would actually teach the subjects in your outline. Try to be brief and to the point.
With this number of student you should have at least 2 or 3 helpers to work the group. A 3 to 1 ratio for instruction is a good guide line to have if possible. Sometimes this is not possible, so you do what you can to make the course successful for the students.
I usually start with a brief introduction to the equipment, and touch on the premise behind fly casting, then address the Pick Up & Lay Down Cast first, then finish up with the Roll Cast.
Reason for finishing with the roll cast is that the success rate on this cast is quite high and you and your students end on a good positive note.
Step 1 : Introduction:
I would begin by covering the equipment with the Student: The Rod, Line, Leader, yarn fly so they feel at ease and know that no hook is at the end of the line. Takes the fear out of the task. Touch on Safety and the importance of knowing the wind direction when fly casting.
Show them the basic handling of the equipment. How to string the rod, then pulling line off the reel, address the drag system on the reel. Show them how to move the rod back and forth in front of them to feed the line out the tip of the rod onto the ground in front of them in preparation to make the cast. General rules watch others around you when casting.
10 min.
Step 2: Demo the pick up and lay down cast for the students.
Explain why we use this cast to teach fly casting: Essentials.
Go through each step of the cast.
Make sure there is no slack in the line
Make sure they pick up or stage the line for back cast
Make sure they make back cast back which is up and behind to Stop 1
Make sure they have enough pause after the back cast to let the line unfurl.
Make sure they make the forward cast with a SLP to a target located about head high in front of the caster to Stop 2
Make sure they point the rod tip at the unfurling loop, and follow the loop and line to the ground or water with the rod tip.
Do it again.
Demo this cast about 3 times with the students watching and listening to your demo.
Have a very short debrief
5 min.
Step 3: Have the students begin the casting task Pick Up & Lay Down, and work one on one through the group with your helpers.
When and if need get out in front of the group and demo the cast again to give them some visual feed back, plus verbalize the actions again to re-enforce all learning aspects your students may need.
When the session has been completed, stop and have a short recap and debrief with the students.
20 min.
Step 4: Then Demo the Roll Cast for the students.
Make sure no slack line
Make sure pull line in to position correctly to stage the line. Stop 1 position.
Make sure you have formed a sufficient D loop behind you.
Make sure you explain the principle of casting the line if right handed to the left of the line etc.
Make sure you make the forward cast to a target about head high in front of you the caster to Stop 2 position
Make sure your line extends over the ground or water to full turn over then falls to the ground or water.
Make sure you point your rod tip to the unfurling loop and follow the loop and line with your rod tip to the water.
Demo this cast about 3 times with the students watching and listening to your demo.
Have a very short debrief
5 min.
Step 5: Have the students begin the casting task and work one on one through the group with your helpers.
Once the task has been learned stop recap with a short debrief.
15 min.
Step 6: Conclusion of of the lessons, thank your students for spending time with you and your helper's, & touch briefly on the FFF and the Local Fly Fishing Club or organization in the area that sponsored the event. Answer any question they may have about joining the organizations and provide sources for information to help them become better fly fishers.
5 min.
Hint it is always good to have some on the side lines helping you keep on track with your lesson agenda. Time line for each section of the lesson need to be adhered to.
All the best
Gary Davison
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[GH] Well done, Gary.
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[GH] Dan Davala comes in with a slightly different approach (He states his reasons) :
QUIZ ANSWERS FROM DAN DAVALA
1.) Do you teach the roll cast as one of the very first tasks for your new fly casting students ?
NO
2.) Briefly, tell us why.
There is not always water present. (I teach in a wide variety of venues, one of which is a city rooftop)
3.) Do you teach the PICK-UP-&-LAY-DOWN to your new students ?
Yes
4.) Briefly, support your decision.
The pick-up & lay-down introduces the very important concept of making a back cast.
5.) Include a brief outline of your lesson plan for the tasks described by Robin.
5 Minutes - Introduce the basic principles of the fly cast. Explain/Demonstrate the Pick-Up & Lay-Down cast.
20 Minutes - Students practice Pick-Up & Lay-Down cast.
5 Minutes - Introduce the term "Loop" and the concept of the variable "Casting Arc"
25 Minutes - Students practice making wide loops and narrow loops on command by adjusting their "Casting Arc"
5 Minutes - Brief summary of concepts learned and recommended strategies for practicing
6.) Add commentary on how you would actually teach the subjects in your outline. Try to be brief and to the point.
5 Minutes - Brief introduction of the concept of fly casting (i.e. the fly is virtually weightless, the line must carry the fly). Explain and demonstrate the pick-up & lay-down cast with an emphasis on the backcast.
20 Minutes - Spread the group out, distribute rods (already strung and rigged with a yarn fly), ensure each rod has approx. 20' of line outside the rod tip.
Allow students to attempt basic pick-up & lay-down casts as demonstrated. At this point I am unconcerned with the results. I expect to see big loops, poor stops, lack of pause, and way too much power. This is all O.K., we will address it in part two. During this 20 minute session, I make my way around to each student, find SOMETHING to compliment, and suggest a few improvements.
5 Minutes - Gather the students back to one place for a break. Introduce the term "loop" to the students by drawing one on the ground in front of them with the fly line (I've learned to always assume they don't know what one is). I draw a narrow "good" loop first, followed by a large loop, then a tailing loop, then back to a "good" narrow loop so it's the last one they see. Provided there are no questions regarding what a loop is, I introduce the idea of the "Casting Arc" and how it relates to the loop size and shape. I first demonstrate how the line will follow the rod tip by moving the rod tip up and down creating a visible sine wave with the bright fly line. I then demonstrate how moving the rod tip through a wide, dome shaped casting arc will result in a wide, dome shaped loop. Next, I explain and demonstrate how narrowing the casting arc until it is more of a V shape will result in narrower loops. During this demonstration, I emphasize the importance of making a good stop on both the forward and back cast.
25 Minutes - Spread the students back out to their spaces. This time, I request that they first make very wide loops on purpose by using too big of a casting arc. After making several BIG loops on purpose, I have them make the same cast only with a narrower casting arc, "more like a V shape". Most students are quite surprised at how easy it is to make a narrow loop on purpose now that they understand the concept. Once I see the loops start to take shape I introduce the concept of false casting and have my students practice by making several false casts before laying one down. During this 25 minute session, I make my way to each student individually, find more things to compliment, then help each improve on whatever I see is the most pressing issue. If a few of the students have a good grasp on the basic cast, I may introduce additional basic concepts on an individual basis to each of them (i.e. trajectory as it relates to accuracy, or stripping/shooting line).
5 Minutes - Bring the students back in, compliment them all, then summarize and reaffirm the concepts covered. I will usually finish with a brief explanation and demonstration of some great ways to practice, such as casting on a side plane (sidearm) so they can see the loops forming and unrolling, or casting at targets with both the forward and back cast. If they get one thing out of the summary, I hope it is PRACTICE!
Dan
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[GH] From Lyth Haartz :
QUESTIONS : -
1.) Do you teach the roll cast as one of the very first tasks for your new fly casting students ?
A. Yes, usually after the PU&LD has been done well enough to cast to fish.
2.) Briefly, tell us why.
A. Most of my students want to catch fish with a fly rod. If they are new to the sport, it will not be long before they find themselves in a place with no back cast room. I think that they need this cast to continue fishing and enjoying the sport.
3.) Do you teach the PICK-UP-&-LAY-DOWN to your new students ?
A. Yes
4.) Briefly, support your decision.
A. Again, my students want to catch fish with a fly rod. This cast get them fishing soon and enjoying the sport.
5.) Include a brief outline of your lesson plan for the tasks described by Robin.
A. Ten students with one instructor are quite a few. I would prefer a class size from 4 to 6 if by myself.
But, if I had 10 students here is what I would do:
Introduction period for 10 to 15 minutes
Students should have rods in their hands
I will demonstrate a couple of grips that they might want to use. Then I would demonstrate and discuss the PU&LD cast. I would emphasize:
· starting with the rod tip low,
· the lift of the line off the water,
· the acceleration to an brisk stop,
· the pause
· the forward cast again with the acceleration to a crisp stop
· the follow through to land the fly on the water
· I would use targets for the students to aim their casts
I would have the students practice this for 10 to 15 minutes while I attend to each member of the class. During that time I will try to ascertain how each student learns the best and try to teach to that method. (eg. seeing, hearing, doing)
When most/all can make a fishable PU&LD cast I would offer the Roll Cast demonstration to be used when there is not room for a back cast. The major points would be:
· the development of the D loop
· the forward cast to be just like what was learned with the PU&LD forward cast.
Practice for another 10 to 15 minutes. Again during this time I would attend to each member of the class.
For about 5 to 10 minutes, I would also show the students the proper line handling when hooking and landing a fish. I think it’s important to make sure the students know what to do when they catch a fish.
I would conclude the 1 hour class with a question and answer period of about 5 to 10 minutes.
If your answered NO to 1.) and/or 3.) then submit an alternative lesson plan outline for your "brand new"students.
Include time (minutes devoted to each event.
6.) Add commentary on how you would actually teach the subjects in your outline. Try to be brief and to the point.
A. During the introduction, I like to incorporate into my lesson the 5 essentials from Bill Gammel’s book. If fact, if at all possible, I would try to provide each student with this book for them to take with them.
I try to be very positive and encouraging with students. I find it most helpful when I can let them know what they did correctly so that they can do that again.
When teaching about how to handle a fish when caught, I have the student cast to me then I grab the fly and play the part of the fish so that they get the feel of a fish on the end of the line. For a new student to fly fishing, this can seem awkward at first and is easy to overcome quickly with instruction.
I want brand new students to become as ready as possible to catch fish with a fly rod. That way, they have lots of fun and begin to really enjoy our sport.
Lyth
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