I was reading a book and the author said, "That on any given day or moment that a coach student relationship can be made of two teachers and two students." It asked,"What do you learn from your coach and what do they learn from you?" I never thought about teaching my coach anything! I am the student and she is the teacher after all. Saying that, it is an interesting idea. What do you think you've taught your coach? I've thought about this and I can't think of a thing. Not to laugh maybe. =-) I'm sure this isn't easy some days as I have my moments.

Share your thoughts! Could be interesting.

teresa

I learn from my students every day. Last week I was showing the 8 step mohawk to a friend, and she was helping me learn how to teach someone who doesn't learn visually and takes verbal instruction very literally. I was saying that the shoulders do not move when stepping forward and she did not get it, because there is actually some movement necessitated by the change from B to F. I switched to saying "the heart still points to the center of the circle and the leading arm is still the leading arm." That worked, and now I will use the same terminology all of my students. I think any student who is a challenge to their coach is teaching the coach how to improve her instruction. I'm sure my coach, who is wonderful to begin with, is now one of the top experts in the world on teaching checking F three turns .

IMO, If a coach doesn't learn from her students, she is limiting herself and her students

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Examine what is said, not who is saying it.

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Skate Free

I've taught my coach not everyone is as talented physically or graceful as she is.. but with patience and determination (aka stubborness) progress is possible. I've also taught her that not every skater needs to be on the top step of the podium. For some of us, the victory is in achieving something specific (like actually getting a recognizable camel spin in competition). She was a strong competitor when she was a kid and she thought that was what everyone who skated wanted to do. She was relieved when I told her I just wanted to accomplish certain things (list of about 10 things.. which we've long ago retired and are now working on things I NEVER thought possible). And the big lesson she has taught me is I can achieve more physically than I ever even dreamed about! That includes even looking somewhat graceful SOME of the time. She's also taught me that even the worst days on ice are bearable if you have someone to laugh with. Thanks Coach!

I tought my first coach how to teach. She was a college student at the time and just starting out in coaching. She'd only taught kids before me - I was an adult, I skated CW and I'd been a school teacher. She learned how to expalin a move instead of just showing it, how to break things down into tiny pieces and how to teach something that she herself couldn't do (spin CW).

My current coach tells me I've taught her patience and how to be satified with tiny improvements that lead to larger accomplishments.

And now when I teach groups, I let the kids teach me that it's okay to fall down and that skating should be, above all, fun.

I think I've taught my coach that you sometimes have to say "Do this" instead of "Don't do that" (e.g. "focus on staying down in the knee", rather than "don't come up in the knee").

And he is learning from Time Itself that, with the best will in the world, the body in its 50s doesn't do what it did in its 30s!

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Mrs Redboots
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I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

I was one of my coach's first adult student.

We were working on something and we had spent quite a bit of time on it and I said "Okay I'm tired of this, let's do something else" and she was quite taken aback because a kid would never say that to her and she had to remember that I was an adult and if I wanted to do something different, I could.

I also had another coach that I think was used to just showing a student how to do something and they got it. I was quite a challenge to her because I didn't just get it and she had to figure out how to break something down to help me do it.

j

Ohh, oh! Add these to my list of things I've taught my coach.. because I was her first adult too... and I've talked her through quite a few other adults.. and now I'm her longest-term student (16 years!)... all her "kids" have grown up and have off-ice lives... but a couple are starting to bring their kids to the rink, now. My coach and I have agreed she'll keep teaching me until we're both in our 80s... and then we'll look at renewing our agreement.

The coach my club hired for my group class at the end of last season was very sceptical when I said that if my injury wouldn't get better, I'd start jumping the other way, whether it could be done, until I had 4 cw jumps 2 weeks later, although the loop was cheated and none were good or failproof. She's also been sceptical about doing biellmanns in jeans for not too long. I guess maybe that more is possible than you think, or something.

Ha ha I teach my coach patience, that's for sure.

Seriously, my coach is a saint for putting up with me. Or maybe it's the other way around

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2010-2011 goals:
Pass Junior MIF test
Don't break anything