Teaching a loved one to sail
 

OK, I admit I am unable to teach someone. Sometimes you explain it
several times and they dont get it. What do you do? Years ago, I
taught College Physics and my students seemed to think I was good but
that is all abstractions. Teaching a skill is different. I have never
been able to teach my wife to steer a canoe either. I cannot explain
how to do it, I just do it. Its like explaining how to ride a bike.
Some people really want personal instruction and others just want to be
pointed in the right direction and let them go. My son is like my
wife, he craves instruction to the nth degree and he makes me crazy.
My 10 yr old daughter just wants some general directions and she'll
figure out the rest. Of course, my little daughter drives my wife
crazy.
Tacking in the channel was like that. How do I tell her "Steer up when
you feel power coming on from the wind and then down a little when it
goes away". "When you tack, you gotta feel when the wind begins to
catch the jib to help push the bow around in a tight tacking situation"
There is a lotta "feel" that goes into this that I cannot explain.

Teaching a loved one to sail
 

wrote in message
oups.com...
OK, I admit I am unable to teach someone. Sometimes you explain it
several times and they dont get it. What do you do? Years ago, I
taught College Physics and my students seemed to think I was good but
that is all abstractions. Teaching a skill is different. I have never
been able to teach my wife to steer a canoe either. I cannot explain
how to do it, I just do it. Its like explaining how to ride a bike.
Some people really want personal instruction and others just want to be
pointed in the right direction and let them go. My son is like my
wife, he craves instruction to the nth degree and he makes me crazy.
My 10 yr old daughter just wants some general directions and she'll
figure out the rest. Of course, my little daughter drives my wife
crazy.
Tacking in the channel was like that. How do I tell her "Steer up when
you feel power coming on from the wind and then down a little when it
goes away". "When you tack, you gotta feel when the wind begins to
catch the jib to help push the bow around in a tight tacking situation"
There is a lotta "feel" that goes into this that I cannot explain.



A proper education instills self learning. You can teach others, but you
certainly can't think for them. It is up to them to chose to learn, to do
that they must chose to think. If they can't think they can only be trained
like animals.

Teaching a loved one to sail
 

Teaching a loved one to sail
 

Maybe she's just genetically predispositioned to be a stinkpotter.

Worse things have happened. :-)

Teaching a loved one to sail
 

Chuck Gould wrote:
Maybe she's just genetically predispositioned to be a stinkpotter.

Worse things have happened. :-)

We will soon know as I have finished my Tolman Skiff and plan to launch
it this coming Saturday. Maybe that will be "her" boat. She doesnt
allow me to use her car (the good one in the family) as I would and I
go beserk if she tries to clean my old Nissan truck with 302,000 miles
on it.

Teaching a loved one to sail
 

"Chuck Gould" wrote in message
ups.com...

Maybe she's just genetically predispositioned to be a stinkpotter.

Worse things have happened. :-)


In my experience, most women are. Not all .... but most.
Something about the ability to go home when you want ... not when you get
there.

I wanted to get a sailboat a few years ago. Vetoed.

Eisboch

Teaching a loved one to sail
 

Teaching a loved one to sail
 

wrote:
OK, I admit I am unable to teach someone.

You can lead a horse to water but cant make them drink.

The secrect getting a horse to drink water is not leading them around,
rather, its how to create the thirst.

You should not be concerend with "teaching" studetns rather wondering
how studetns "learn."
Thus: learners not students.


Sometimes you explain it
several times and they dont get it. What do you do?

Determine what the learner need to be able to do when its all over.
Match learnering styles, outcomes, learning methods.


Years ago, I
taught College Physics and my students seemed to think I was good but
that is all abstractions. Teaching a skill is different.


No, not really. Yes, there are a few diffrneces between Thinking and
DOing skills but in the long run none.

I have never
been able to teach my wife to steer a canoe either. I cannot explain
how to do it,

Sounds as though you lack the skill to describe skills (behaviors) ,
that when put together, alow a person to canoe.

Think: Progressve approximation of a target behavior. In other words,
baby steps. Or learn to crawl before stand, before toddle, before walk,
before walking 25 feet without falling. etc.

I just do it.

Modeling is an effective learning stratigy. See one, do one, teach one.
Monkey see, monkey do (social learning theory)

Its like explaining how to ride a bike.
Some people really want personal instruction and others just want to be
pointed in the right direction and let them go.

Yes, now youre on the right track. Diffrent learning types.


My son is like my
wife, he craves instruction to the nth degree and he makes me crazy.

Do you mean detailed concrete instructions? If you can not explaine
what you want how on earth can you expect someone to do it?????

My 10 yr old daughter just wants some general directions and she'll
figure out the rest. Of course, my little daughter drives my wife
crazy.
Tacking in the channel was like that. How do I tell her "Steer up when
you feel power coming on from the wind and then down a little when it
goes away".

Lots of prereq skills to acccomplish that.


"When you tack, you gotta feel when the wind begins to
catch the jib to help push the bow around in a tight tacking situation"
There is a lotta "feel" that goes into this that I cannot explain.

You are not alone. I have listened to 1000s of seasoned managers, cops,
teachers, who get very frustrated becfause they lack the skills to
describe human behavor. Just that you are describing this problem shows
that you have great insight.

The first step is to be able tod istinguish betwen an opinion and a
fact. For example:
1) outside theweather is 81 degrees F, wind NW 18-24 K, visibility 3000
m.
2) Its a beautiful day.

Which is an opinion? Which is the fact (observable behavior)

Now lets take that concept and apply it diffrently. Which is an
opnionand fact?
1) you are so stupid!
2) name all parts of the mainsail.

AKA bob

Teaching a loved one to sail
 

Short Wave Sportfishing wrote:

On Mon, 20 Nov 2006 13:59:04 -0500, DSK wrote:

That said, the best answer is really to let somebody else
teach your wife to sail.

All those words for that one gem of wisdom.

One of the best things I did when we were in the process of buying a
sailboat was to talk to my sister who recommended that I take a course
in sailing without my husband. I did that - actually I took 3
courses. One in a Rainbow 23 foot with no engine, one in a Newport 30
(I think), and the third one was a weekend with my husband on a Morgan
45.

In the first (beginner) course, they had a short class work session,
and then we went out in the boats and we each took a turn steering and
sail handling until everyone had mastered each of the skills that were
presented in each lesson. You could do this in 4 sessions - morning
and afternoon Sat and Sunday, but I picked to do it in the morning of
4 successive weekends so I could process the information between each
lesson.

BTW I was already completely comfortable in the water, as in swimming
and I can canoe and row.

My biggest problem was learning to reverse think when I was using a
tiller. I still can't do that, and if I try, I then can't use a wheel
either for awhile. There are some skills that just aren't worth it to
me to learn and that is one of them. Another one is a racing flip
turn and also any kind of diving (as in diving off a diving board - I
love SCUBA and snorkeling, but I just am not coordinated enough to
reliably go into the water head first when I start out standing up on
my feet)

Teaching a loved one to sail
 

OK, I admit I am unable to teach someone. Sometimes you explain it
several times and they dont get it. What do you do? Years ago, I
taught College Physics and my students seemed to think I was good but
that is all abstractions. Teaching a skill is different. I have never
been able to teach my wife to steer a canoe either. I cannot explain
how to do it, I just do it. Its like explaining how to ride a bike.
Some people really want personal instruction and others just want to be
pointed in the right direction and let them go. My son is like my
wife, he craves instruction to the nth degree and he makes me crazy.
My 10 yr old daughter just wants some general directions and she'll
figure out the rest. Of course, my little daughter drives my wife
crazy.
Tacking in the channel was like that. How do I tell her "Steer up when
you feel power coming on from the wind and then down a little when it
goes away". "When you tack, you gotta feel when the wind begins to
catch the jib to help push the bow around in a tight tacking situation"
There is a lotta "feel" that goes into this that I cannot explain.


A lot of good advice has been givien here but I think that the answer to how
you teach someone to get the feeling of the thing has not really been
adressed fully. Admittedly I have never taught someone to sail, as I am just
learning myself, but I do have a lot of experience in another area that is
perhaps more difficult. I am a martial artist in several styles and the task
of learning/ teaching someone, how to feel your body move and react to
itself is very difficult. How do you tell somone what it feels like from
your point of view to push or hold some thing. The thing that I have always
felt worked best was to put their hand between mine and the target, going
lightly. If i am pushing they can feel how much force goes into them and
what I am reading that comes out of the object. I would suggest putting her
hand on the tiller, when it comes time for that, and holding her hand over
the top. She can feel when you move and why, she can feel how hard you hold
it and when you shift directions. This might also have some benefit in the
patience and understanding arena as she might feel better holding hands and
being close to you than she would standing across the deck with you shouting
orders. In my experience, most women like holding hands. If she doesn't
learn to sail at least you had fun.

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