What Is It? An Interesting Question

[Silverback]

A wise man defined flyfishing as "the presentation of the inedible to the unfeedable". He must have been a steelheader.

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Eschew Sesquipedalian Obfuscation

[Later, Peter]

Why confuse the issue early on...
Simple is usually better, fly fishing is entice a fish (with an IQ of +/- 4) to eat your (IQ of above +/- 4)imitation insect...
I also have taught beginner's fly fishing. I also have found it usually MUCH easier to teach women to cast.
1. they aren't impressed with their own brute force (I WILL make the fly line go further)
B. no preconceived notion of how things should be done.
Don't go over board with detail... give them the picture in broad strokes & then fine tune as needed (questions, mistakes to be corrected)
use your imagination... I had one student that just wouldn't put ANY power in her casting stroke. I found she had a fear of mice/rats. I bought a mouse fly & had her aim at it. I kept moving the mouse fly further until she could cast, accurately 40+ feet....
& above all:
HAVE A GOOD TIME.
Later,
Peter

[Harold Hattaway]

It is a chance to tell nature we are not all jerks.
It is a time spent that will never be taken away from you.
Time fishing adds to your lifespan and is not wasted.
It is a few seconds of excitement, fear, joy, saddness and anticipation.
Fly fishing is always rewarding if you are fishing for the right thing. (fish are a secondary catch)
It is a time of peace where nothing is in turmoil.
It is a rebuilding and repairing time. It can replace doctors and pills.

Most of all it is a little spot of Glue that draws us all together and keeps us a huge internet family.

Harold

[Betty Hiner]

fun

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Trouts don't live in ugly places

While serving in the U.S. Army, I was trained as a Senior Instructor. I learned that to be good at instructing others there are three basic rules....

1)INTRODUCTION: Tell the class, what topic you are about to instruct (talk to them about, and if there will be demonstrations) Highlight the major items of importance being cover by the topic (light overview).

2)TEACH: Do the instructions, and demonstrations. If there is a demonstration, first do it at normal speed with no commentary. Then do the demonstration again, breaking the demonstration into seqments, with commentary (best to do the commentary before or after the demonstration segment, so you are looking at the class, while speaking).

3)REVIEW: Closing out with a review of the most important items covered during the class.


TIPS: If you want to include group participation, asking question of the group during the class. I learned that the best way is to ...

A) Ask the question, then pause.... this allows everyone time to think about the question.

B) Ask if anyone wishes to respond.

C) If the question is not the one you were looking for, Thank them for their answer. Gently reword the question, explaining that the previous response was not quite what you were hoping for, repose the (reworded) question to the group again. This will save face for the person that responded with a different reply from the one you were seeking.

At the end of the class, open the floor to questions from the group, for you to reply to! If time is short, limit the number of questions.

It is hard to stand upfront of a group and talk about something, write out the lesson outline, before you give the class, and practice the whole class (including demonstrations), until you are comfortable with the instructions. Time yourself, you be surprise that, the time alloted for the instruction, is too short or too long, for the instruction you will be giving. This will help you either add material or delete. It helps to tape record while you are practicing, so you can hear yourself, and polish up you speaking habits.

Always turn to face the group (or look up if you are doing something on a table while facing the class), when speaking! Do not look over the heads of the class when talking, instead look at various members of the class as you speak, this helps to give them the sense that you are speaking to them.

~ Parnelli

Post Script: I found that to prepare new material for a class instruction, required 8 hours (minmium for each hour of instruction) for writing, preparation, and rehersal. To do the same topic again at a later date, required at least 2 hours of reviewing the lesson outline, and rehersal.

[This message has been edited by Steven H. McGarthwaite (edited 25 January 2006).]

[Steve Murphy]

Excellent, thanks everyone. Keep the tips coming.

[Taxon]

Flyfishing is using a hook, dressed with materials to imitate fish food, tied to a leader, attached to a line, the weight of which is used, through leverage of a rod and reel, to position the imitation in a location likely to hold fish, and then imparting any movement necessary to make the imitation appear natural.

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Taxon
[url=http://FlyfishingEntomology.com:6bfd7]FlyfishingEntomology.com[/url:6bfd7]

Hi Steve,
I like Darrell's answer. It is what it is.
Another similar question which I think got mixed in is, why do people FF? Many of us on here just love to fish (and hunt), and ff'ing is the best way to catch certain fish. I like to baitcast for bass, minnow fish for crappie, chunk jigs for stripers and sandies, run trotlines for catfish, and flycast size 22 baetis imitations for picky spring creek trout, all depending on the season. Maybe some of your students will be the same.
Just my 2 cents. Good luck with your class.
DW

[Jed]

Flyfishing is many things to different people. To all of us it is an opportunity to walk through an open door into a different world. Best of all you get to define what that world is about.

It is a mixture of fish, fishing, relaxation, meditation, creativity, escape, competition, becoming a part of the natural world in which we live, perfection of an art form and a way of life. For most of us fishing contains all of the above in differing degrees.

jed

[Steve Murphy]

Jed,

Heavy on the Escape.