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Walter & Group...
From Roy Sedge. My notation in red:
Gordy:
The app SloPro used by Thomas Berggren works great. I use a app called "Slow Time." It works in a similar manner, costs a few dollars but has a few more options. My students typically enroll for a series of lessons designed to develop a 60 foot cast with the fly hitting a three foot circle. The sessions are conducted in a progressive manner with the student in total control of his/her progress.
Prior to the first few sessions I tape the student performing a PULD* with 40 feet of line: The PULD on the first session is performed without any instruction and serves as a base video. When the student returns for the next lesson, prior to any comment they are again taped.
Using Slow Time, I immediately email each tape to the student with a critique of the casting lesson and things to work on prior to the next session. The student therefore has on file something to validate their progress and teaching notes for the next task in the casting sequence.
I archive all tapes providing me a great instrument for critiquing my teaching techniques and serving as a form of quality control to include potential areas for improvement.
Visual information works equally well for the instructor as well as the student. My iPad is almost as important as my fly rod when it comes to teaching.
Roy Sedge
Stream To Sea Fly Fishing Schools
* PULD = Pick up and lay down.
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From Jean-Francois Lavallee:
VIS-QUIZ
1. As you explain and demonstrate a task, list some of the ways that you effectively lead your student(s) to learn as they observe.
Always say what you want them to look for or at so that they focus their attention to the right place.
Question them about what they are seeing to validate their understanding
2. Sometimes we want the student to concentrate on what he sees the ROD do as we demonstrate. How do you do that ?
Use the rod and bend it as required with your hands to explain (ex flex the tip). Then cast and ask them to find the shape or movement you just demonstrated. Always tell them where you want them to look
3. Do you use rods designed or modified for teaching to help emphasize this?
Yes, white and yellow instructor rods are often easier to see in relation to the background.
Fly-o or Echo rope rods are also two easily seen rods that are good for teaching
[GH] Echo rods including the teaching "rope rod" are available from Rajeff Sports (Tim Rajeff), It is labelled the "ECHO MICRO PRACTICE ROD". (It is my favorite.)
4. At other times, we want the student to concentrate on what he sees the LINE do. How do you do that ?
Again, focus their attention to where they should be looking at. Explain by holding the line in your hands in a static manner, then demonstrate with casting.
[GH] Lefty Kreh sometimes demonstrates while using only the tip half of the fly rod. This helps take the emphasis from the rod and places more of it on the line.
[GH] Lefty's, "Tight Quarters Cast" was developed for use on small bush covered streams. I've used it to fish snook in "mangrove tunnels" It consists of grasping the rod near the middle, leaving the rest including handle/reel behind you and making short casts. Lefty says, "I figured out that I could put 2 feet of rod behind me and instantly convert my 9-foot rod to a 7 foot one" *
Works for teaching, too, when you want to take the emphasis off the rod and place it on the line.
* CASTING with LEFTY KREH, by Lefty Kreh, 2008, pp. 243-245.
5. Do you ever use special lines which make it easier for the student to see ?
Yes, Wulff triangular taper…orange. Makes it soooo much easier to see
6. How do you have your student learn from what he sees your BODY (arms, hands, body motion) do as you demonstrate tasks ?
Exaggerate or amplify the movement. Like we do for the reach cast. Not only move your arm but take a huuuge step to the side to emphasis the movement. Again, telling them where to look.
[GH] Glad you brought that up. In line with Tom White's famous, "When you teach, use a BIG CRAYON !", sometimes exaggeration helps to make a point.
7. What is your method of observing your student's casting to determine whether there is good TRACKING (side to side reasonably parallel loop legs.)
Look at their arm in close where the initial motion is generated, stand behind them, look at their loops as it unrolls (specially at the ends when it will kick either way if out of track),
Put student next and parallel to a wall. He must cast without touching the wall.
[GH] Here, in the tropics, I place the student between two coconut trees. Can also do it by placing him between two buildings which are close together.
8. Do you have any tricks to share on enhancing visual teaching effects in the classroom ?
Use black board, use video which can be paused to highlight certain things, use fly-o.
[GH] Power Point slide presentations and videos help a great deal, too.
9. What are some potential visual problems when you are out on a bright sunny day hosting a casting workshop on a field at 9:00 AM during a Conclave (Fair)?
Glare of the sun, and positioning the students in the right way so they can better see. Not everybody may have sun glasses
10. What (if anything) do you teach your students about what and how the trout sees?
Tell them about the Snell window/fish window.
[GH] My dad (Pop Hill) used to test his new fly designs by actually getting in the swimming pool and looking up at them. This way, he not only learned how the fish observes the fly, but he learned a great deal about what the fish sees at the pool edge as he looked from different depths. He'd have me stand there with rod in hand. The FIRST thing he'd see was my rod and every move it made!
11. Do you ever have the student visualize what he cannot see as he presents a fly ? (Hint: Teaching to hover during accuracy casting, etc.)
Often make them cast with eyes closed, you a panel to block sight for curve cast for example and remove panel afterwards so student can see result.
[GH] If you have a copy of Joan Wulff's FLY-CASTING-ACCURACY, just take a moment to study the picture on the front cover. That picture speaks volumes to this subject.
12. Do you ever use video feedback technique to show your student what he's doing?
Yes, funny how they are shy at first, but ask for more afterwards.
[GH] Here is a little trick to get the reluctant student to agree to allow you to video him. Start by giving him your camera and have him video YOU. After playing it back and discussing it, he'll change his tune.
13. Do you ever use a mirror to help teach fly casting?
Tell them to practice in front of mirror at home yes. In class often use a window, more precisely the reflexion in the window (same effect as mirror, but more available)
[GH] A few years ago, Molly Semenik was practicing for her MCI exam outside her home. She noted that she could see herself and her fly line in a big picture window with the sun just right for the reflection. Talk about "instant feedback" !!!!!!
14. One word description of a fly line loop is: "The shape of the fly line as it passes the rod tip". This may be meaningless to a new flycasting student. Do you have a visual way of demonstrating to this student a fly line loop?
Draw it on the board or either place the line on the flow in the correct shape to illustrate or hold it between your hands.
[GH] On the field, I've seen it done well by having one instructor (or student) hold the fly rod while he other faces the class and manipulates the line into various loop sizes and shapes.
15. Briefly list some important considerations which help students see and understand different loop sizes as you demonstrate them. (Task 1 on the MCI exam.)
Direction of both legs of the loop, parallel, top going upwards (open loop), top coming from below (tailing loop), spacing between two legs.
[GH] 1. Demonstrate them while casting s l o w l y as you can without loosing the loop configuration.
2. Do this demo. using a vertical rod plane.
3. Be certain to make big loops REALLY BIG and small loops as small as you can so the students can immediately see the differences.
4. Use as few well chosen words as possible as you do this.
5. Repeat with silence.
6. Call for comments, questions and concerns.
16. We sometimes reinforce our learning with the use of pantomime. Is this mostly learning by SEEING? or is it mainly learning by FEEL?
Both. To do the pantomime you often must see it first then you start to imitate it and thus start feeling it. Actually it is also by hearing as we normally explain as we do (downup of Krieger for example)*
[GH] * THE ESSENCE OF FLYCASTING, by Mel Krieger, 1987, pp. 87-99.
17. Do you ever use the timing for the student's forward cast to help him time the back cast?
Yes.. the line takes the same amount of time to unroll in the front and in the back. The forward cast becomes a good cue for the student to imagine and time his back cast
18. Do you sometimes teach your students to watch their back casts?
Yes
19. If you answered YES to #18, tell us how you do that.
Either by opening slightly the body and looking over the shoulder, but preferably by tilting the cast to the side palm up. This way looking back doesn’t induce a rotation in the cast as turning your shoulders would
20. Do you ever use a visual method to teach the relationship between ROD BEND and CASTING ARC for your advanced students?
Draw on the board the casting arc they make, to use after as a guideline for them to try a shorter one or longer one.
21. If you answered YES to # 20, briefly tell us how you do that.
See 20
[GH] Also... sliding the rod tip along a ceiling, rain gutter, etc. and having the student appreciate how much the rod must bend as the casting arc increases to match the carry of greater amounts of line for greater casting distances.
Check out Steve Smith's teaching device below this message.
22. Can you provide us with a reference from the fly casting literature on the use of visual HAND TARGET LINES and EYE TARGET LINES as one method of presenting a fly accurately to a target?
Joan Wulff Fly casting accuracy, 1997, p12-13
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>From Steve Smith. See his picture, attached.:
15. Briefly list some important considerations which help students see and understand different loop sizes as you demonstrate them. (Task 1 on the MCI exam.)Again by showing horizontally with a straight rope what happens to the loops when the rod is not bent.It follows the rod tip and the loop is very open.If you can keep the tip on the line of the rope while you cast you will see how the line follows the tip and you have a tight loop.The tailing loop is best shown during the vertical cast.
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