Importance: Very high Understanding and knowing how to rectify the typical mistakes your clients will make is a vital and fundamental skill for the SUP instructor.

Recognising the standard mistakes that beginners make is an essential aspect of L1 SUP Instruction. If you’ve already been teaching for a while you’ll probably have seen all these mistakes already, many many times! So if you think you’ve already seen everything there is to see, and can spot (and rectify) anything your average beginner can throw at you, and you know which ones are the most serious, then all good – feel free to move on to the next lesson. However, if you’d like to do a bit of refreshing on the subject, there is 35 minutes of very good revision material here that it will do you no harm to refresh on.

---

We’ll start by looking at the more serious mistakes, that need to be rectified straight away. This section of the lesson will take about 15 minutes to view.

Now we need to consider the less significant errors that you’ll encounter, and what to do about them. This video will take about 25 minutes to complete.

Hopefully you now have a good overall feel for the sort of beginner errors you’re going to be dealing with, and what you need to do about them.

The important take-aways from this are:

• Beginners makes LOTS of mistakes!

• Not all are of equal significance or importance.

Some mistakes need correcting immediately, because

• They are likely to cause the client to fall

• They are likely to cause injury to the client

• They will cause that client to be very slow in comparison to everyone else

Others are less serious but, depending on how badly they are being displayed, may

• prevent the client ever improving or developing

• cause early fatigue

To give another view on the most common mistakes, here’s a quick vid from Supboarder mag showing their ‘top 9 paddling’ mistakes, which aligns pretty much with our own descriptions above. (However, note the awful duck/asymmetric stance of the person in the vid! Let’s not be doing any of that!)

---

Importance: Critical! This lesson is very much the ‘meat’ of what the NZ L1 qualification is all about. You will be required to deliver some aspects of a beginner lesson at your practical assessment.

Unlike most aspects of SUP teaching, the beginner lesson can and should follow a fairly rigid and formal structure, to ensure that everything is covered properly and to ensure the greatest possible chances of successful outcomes. No matter how experienced an instructor you are, we strongly recommend that you work through this lesson, as a refresher on the process.

You may well find that the process we use in New Zealand differs from what you have been taught, or developed through your own practices. It’s principle it’s not a problem if you do things a bit differently, as long as you are still achieving the same learning outcomes, lesson efficiency and safety practices. However, if you are going to work for an established NZ Paddleboard school then there is every chance that they will operate their lessons as set out here, and they will expect you to do it the same way. For this reason, in your practical assessment we will ask you to demonstrate and follow the procedures detailed here. Once you have passed your assessment, if you choose to revert to your previous way of doing things, that’s up to you.

Learning to deliver your lessons ‘the NZ SUP way’ should be seen as an opportunity to evaluate your own way of doing things, and – if it is the case – consider why you’re doing it differently. It may be that you’ve found a better way of working (in which case we’d love to hear about it!), or your specific circumstances simply don’t suit the process shown here. As long as you can justify it, it’s not a problem.

---

The beginner lesson should be considered as five distinct phases.

Pre Lesson Preparation
This is the stuff that happens before the actual lesson itself, ie getting all the kit and paperwork ready

Part A: Safety Briefing  & maybe a warm-up
The absolutely vital safety briefing, as covered in detail in a previous lesson, and then perhaps some sort of warm up session, if appropriate. 

Part B: On the Beach Instruction
This is another absolutely vital part of the session, introducing the clients to their equipment and showing them how to use it. 

Part C:  On the water Session
The session itself, which has its own phases and flow. 

Part D: Warming down & Following up
The session does not finish when the clients step off their board at the end of their paddling, especially if you have any desire to see the clients again for further instruction. The lesson should be finished with a debrief and warm down. 

Each of these phases is explained below, with its own accompanying video. Please excuse the poor sound quality on some of the film footage in these modules. Despite numerous attempts we have not yet managed to find a location that has perfect conditions and perfect silence! We will continue trying.

If you wish to add further explanation, information and teaching above and beyond what is covered here when you are doing your own lessons, then this will not count against you in the assessment, although we recommend not over-doing the onshore stuff – your clients have come to paddleboard, not talk about it, so ensure that they do get a decent on-water experience!

---

Lesson Preparation & Set-Up

This section will take about 10 minutes to watch and covers:

• Checks, equipment and paperwork considerations before the lesson 
• Preparing the lesson site
• Delivering the safety brief  
• Doing a warm-up  

We strongly recommend that you download and use the template prompt card that was provided in the Safety Briefing lesson, while practicing your own safety briefs.

Now the lesson can start properly…

---

On the beach – part 1

In this section , which will take about 20 minutes to watch, we look at:

• Introduction to the board & paddle.

• How to paddle

• How to change sides with the paddle

• How to turn

• How to stop!

We strongly recommend that you download and use the Part B prompt card while following and practicing delivering this part of the lesson. 

If you’re comfortable with this part of the onshore briefing, you can now move on to the next part.

---

On the beach – part 2

Now that we have shown them the basics of paddling, we have to show them a few other  really important things. In this section, which will take about 20 minutes to watch, we’ll look at the Part B beach teaching and practice for :

• How to get on and off the board

• Paddling in safe position

• Doing the first stand up

• Falling in and getting back onto the board

• Carrying the board

Again, we strongly recommend that you download and use the Part B prompt card while following and practicing delivering this part of the lesson, until the flow comes naturally.

Despite the fact that it has taken rather longer to discuss and dissect the Part B material, it actually only takes 10 minutes or so in ‘real life’ with real clients. And it is 10 minutes incredibly well spent that will make all the difference in ensuring your lesson goes smoothly and successfully.

Hopefully you now have a feel for how it flows. Once you have delivered it a few times it feels extremely natural and becomes easy to deliver. This format is used by virtually every successful SUP school in New Zealand – not because they are mandated to, but simply because it works so well!

---

Onto the water!

Now we’re ready to hit the water. In this module, which will take about 20 minutes to watch, we will look at:

• The launch

• The safe position work-through

• The stand-up

• Getting going

• Foot faults

• The session end

This module is a bit more discussion-based rather than based on ‘live footage’ as there is a lot to talk about.

And there you have it. After all the other learning and preparation you have completed in this course, you’ve now done the real thing, and introduced some newcomers to our great sport. Well done!

One thing not covered in the video – how long should this phase of the lesson last? 45 minutes is a perfectly acceptable amount of time on the water for a first lesson, indeed you will often find that this as much as clients can cope with.

But it’s not quite over yet. Just a few more things to consider…

---

Warm Down & Follow Up

Finally, once ashore, a couple of really important aspects to finishing the session and ensuring everyone got the most out of it.  In this module, which will take about 8 minutes to watch, we will look at:

• The wrap-up

• Onshore debrief

• Warm Down

These last few minutes will make a good impression with your clients and also leave you in the best possible position for either then packing up to go home, or preparing for the next lesson.

---

In Summary

So to summarise this very important lesson, we have looked at:

• Pre lesson preparation

• Setting up the lesson

• The safety briefing & warm-up

• The onshore work

• Getting everyone onto the water

• Safe Position Work

• The stand Up

• The paddling session

• The end of the session

• Post session

This is undoubtedly one of the most important lessons in this course. Your practical assessment will require you to deliver one or all of:

• the Part 2 onshore briefing, (using the prompt card if you wish)
• getting the clients onto the water,
• working with the clients in Safe Position,
• getting the clients to their feet for the first time,
• recovering the clients to shore at the completion of the lesson.

Feel free to revisit the lesson as often as you require, in order to be properly prepared.