Optional: Many paddleboard instructors in New Zealand teach paddleboarding as part of the school curriculum. It’s a great way of increasing your business. This lesson explains what’s available and how to access it.

If you are not originally from New Zealand you will probably not be familiar with the NCEA exam/qualification system used in secondary schools here. education system here. If your local school(s) have students doing Physical Education as one of their specialist options at NCEA level (the exams and qualifications usually taken in year 11 (NCEA level 1), year 12 (NCEA level 2) and year 13 (NCEA level 3)), then they could be doing paddleboarding as part of that.

In this lesson we describe the various NCEA unit standards on offer and how to go about making them happen.

The video will take about 15 minutes to view.

Remember, you can return and revisit this lesson any time.

There will not be any questions on this in your assessment – it is only of relevance to instructors with the opportunity to work in this particular area. If this is not yet you, we hope that you’ll manage to get something going with your local schools, and help spread the love of the sport!

Essential. Understanding how to impart information to your clients is a vital aspect of being a good coach. This is a skill that you can always raise your game on. There is an assignment at the end of this lesson.

Paddleboard instruction beyond basic beginner level starts to bring in new challenges, as the relationship with the client changes from straightforward ‘do this’ instruction, to the more flexible, two-way process, known as coaching.

Coaching is about assisting the client on their own learning journey. It’s much more than just knowing the technical details, it’s also about the methods of imparting that knowledge, along with the associated factors such as motivation and feedback processes.

This lesson takes a brief look into this world. It’s a massive topic and becomes ever more important as you move into the realms of higher performance sport. In this course we just touch upon it. If you want to learn more then this is what our further coaching levels will touch on.

The lesson will take around 25 minutes to complete, plus the time taken for your assignment.

The lesson discusses:

• Instruction vs coaching
• Factors that influence learning
• Principles of coaching
• Motivation & Feedback

As explained earlier in this course, teaching the paddle stroke gets rather more complex once you’ve moved beyond the basic beginner level. There may be obvious work-ons, but often it can be quite hard to explain to the client what they’re doing wrong, because they have no actual idea of what their body is doing! As detailed in the lesson you just watched, video is by far and away the best trick in our toolbox for this. It is a very powerful way of working with a client. Here’s a quick example – it’s rough and ready, but that’s the point. This is how it works in real life. You video your client, then you go through it with them. Ideally at least on a laptop or decent sized tablet, so that the picture is big enough to look at, but even on your phone it can be useful.

Note the positive comments, and the work-ons. The client goes away feeling positive but knowing where to go next.

The assignment detailed below will be for discussion at your Level 2 assessment.

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Check Understanding!

Do you understand:

• The different ways your clients take on information
• The different factors that can influence your clients’ ability to absorb information
• The importance of motivation
• What constitutes good feedback

If you’re unsure on any of these, go back and review the lesson again. Otherwise, move on to the assignment below.

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Assignment

Ok, so this is likely to be the most challenging assignment in this Level 2 course, but hopefully also the most rewarding for you. The assignment is as follows.

1: Get a friend to video you paddling past the camera

2: Now, view that video and prepare some feedback for yourself , based on what you see. (Not what you think you know about your paddling, but purely on what you are seeing on the video). You will be asked to present this at the Assessment. We want you to discuss what you are doing, using the terminology from the paddle technique lesson. (ie talk about your reach, entry, catch, release, blade angles etc). Using the feedback techniques discussed here, discuss what you are doing well, and what the video shows you could work on. The example vid above should hopefully help with this.

So you will need to bring the video to the assessment, along with any notes you wish to make. If you can show the video at slow speed settings, (as shown in the example above), then so much the better – you will find much more to discuss and comment on, this way. Half speed or quarter speed is really good. If you have never done this before with your own paddling, you are going to find this an extremely useful and interesting exercise!

There are no rights and wrongs for this assignment. We are only looking for a couple of minutes of feedback, not a huge presentation. And we are not expecting you to rip your technique apart – if your paddling is perfect and there is nothing to work on then good for you! Nor are we judging your paddling skills – although if there are any significant problems revealed that you don’t identify in your analysis, we will bring them to your attention. (So you’re getting even more bang for your buck from this process. It’s also a free technique analysis!)

The primary aim of the assignment is to get you looking closely at paddle technique, and how to give feedback on it. If you’ve never done this before then you may well find it a daunting challenge. However, if you want to teach progressors, you are going to need to learn to develop a critical eye. To actually see and understand what they are doing. So, where better to start, than with a critical eye over your own technique!

Essential.  Understanding the considerations of exposing your progressor clients to more challenging conditions is an essential safety requirement for the L2 instructor, so you should complete this lesson to ensure that you’re up to speed on the topic, and your safety decisions and processes are sound. 

This lesson looks at what needs to be considered when taking your clients into more challenging conditions. While that initial beginner lesson really should be carried out in the most benign, flat-water, windless conditions possible, your progressor paddler needs to learn to paddle in more challenging conditions, possibly even right up to an introduction to dealing with surf etc.  This lesson gives a general overview of the issues that will be encountered and how best to approach them. 

The lesson will take around 20 minutes to complete. The video discusses:

• Dealing with more bumpy conditions
• Dealing with more windy conditions
• Dealing with shorebreak
• Preparing for surf

The test at the end of this course may include questions about the various issues and challenges you might encounter when teaching progressors.

While you will not be asked to carry out any specific paddle technique coaching in more challenging conditions during your L2 assessment, there will be questions and discussion about the various issues and challenges you might encounter during the day, and the choice of venue for the assessment may well provide some more challenging conditions to operate in anyway. 

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Check Understanding!

Do you understand:

• The challenges that the progressor and the instructor will face when running a session in more bumpy or windy conditions
• The challenges that the instructor will face when dealing with a shorebreak
• Why a vital part of the L2 instructor’s role is ensuring that their clients understand the basic rules when taking their SUP anywhere near the surf environment.

If you’re unsure on any of these, go back and review the lesson again. Otherwise, you can move on to the next lesson.

Optional: This is a topic that doesn’t usually get included in SUP Instructor Qualifications. However, it’s a great way of raising your game when it comes to teaching progressors, so if you want to improve your L2 instructonal skills we strongly recommend completing the lesson.

Whereas beginner SUP lessons follow a very standard and predictable format, no two progressor lessons are alike, especially when working towards specific goals such as improving sup performance for racing or surfing.  Therefore, planning the lesson in advance is a great way of ensuring that the right things get covered. 

This lesson will take around 25 minutes to complete.

This training video discusses:

• Why plan lessons?
• What sort of things to include
• Some example scenarios. 

You will not be expected to present a lesson plan in your L2 assessment. However, it will be a standard requirement in the more advanced coaching courses, and it’s a great way of ensuring that everything gets covered, so we strongly commend getting into the habit of planning your progressor lessons. 

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Check Understanding!

Do you understand:

• The benefits of preparing a lesson plan in advance
• The sort of things you might include in a lesson plan

If you’re unsure on any of these, go back and review the lesson again. Otherwise, you can move on to the next lesson.

Optional.  If you have already been working with progressor paddlers for a while then you will be familiar with the faults they display in their paddling. However, if you’ve been out of the game for a while then this would be good revision. If you are wanting to progress into the world of SUP coaching then it will definitely be worthwhile watching.

This lesson looks at some of the main inefficiencies that progressors tend to exhibit when paddling. It is just skimming the surface of the topic, as this is very much getting into the realms of paddle coaching, which is beyond the remit of the L2 qualification. However, the information here, combined with the information in the previous lesson on what proper paddling should look like, will combine to give a good general feel on how to start finding your way into paddle stroke coaching. 

This lesson will take around 16 minutes to complete. The video discusses:

• A quick refresher on beginner faults
• Some of the things you are likely to see with progressor paddlers.

While you will not be asked to carry out any specific paddle technique coaching in your L2 assessment, there will be questions and discussion about paddling technique during the day, and there are likely to be progressor paddling faults and inefficiencies on display which you would be expected to identify and discuss.  

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Check Understanding!

Do you understand:

• What a proper paddle stroke should look like, in terms of reach, entry, power phase & release 
• Why it’s generally not a good thing if the blade doesn’t enter far enough forward, or enters in a backward-sweeping motion
• What that looks like, in practice.

If you’re unsure on any of these, go back and review the lesson again. Otherwise, you can move on to the next lesson.

Optional.  If you are already set up for working with progressor paddlers you will no doubt have all the gear you need. However, if you are planning on updating or investing in equipment for the role you will find this lesson very useful. 

This lesson looks at the equipment requirements for working with progressor paddlers. While it is possible to achieve a reasonable amount of progressor instruction using basic beginner boards, you really do need the right gear in order to progress properly into faster paddling,  improving balance and preparing clients for paddle surfing etc. This lesson gives a general overview of the sort of equipment you might consider utilising for progressor teaching. 

The lesson will take around 10 minutes to complete. The video discusses:

• Boards for progressors
• Paddles for progressors
• Other equipment for progressors

You will not be asked about progressor equipment choices during the assessment procedure.  

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Check Understanding!

Do you understand:

• What sort of boards, paddles and other equipment will assist in working with progressor paddlers. 

If you’re unsure, go back and review the lesson again. Otherwise, you can move on to the next lesson.

Essential. Introducing your clients to a wider range of stances is a very important tool in progressor teaching.

This lesson looks at the sequence of stances that can be taught to progressors. Teaching more advanced stances is an excellent way to improve your clients’ paddleboarding capabilities – the more advanced stances are also a vital requirement in developing skills for SUP surfing, downwinding and other more advanced activities, and it may well help them with their paddling technique too. 

This lesson will take around 20 minutes to complete.

This training video discusses:

• The importance of stance
• Teaching stances
• The various stance options
• Using props to teach stances

You will be expected to present a lesson on one of these stance techniques at your assessment, so we strongly recommend familiarising yourself with each stance and the reasons for using it, and practicing presenting each one as an onshore ‘part B’.

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Check Understanding!

Do you understand:

• The sequence of stances that can be taught to progressors?
• The main reasons and uses for each type of stance?

If you’re unsure on any of these, go back and review the lesson again. Otherwise, you can move on to the next lesson.

Essential.  Understanding the fundamentals of paddling is an essential skill for the paddleboard instructor.  This lesson goes into a fair degree of detail on the paddlestroke, a topic not usually addressed in any significant detail in instructor courses. We strongly recommend you view it in full.

This lesson looks at what is actually going on when we paddle. It explores the various phases of the stroke and what is going on with the blade in the water. It also looks at what paddle instruction should be aiming to achieve, and how there is absolutely not just one right way to paddle.   There are myriad different ways to use the paddle in order to propel a paddleboard forward. Some are undoubtedly more efficient than others, but ultimately it comes down to the requirements of the individual, as to which type of paddling will be best for them. 

This lesson will take around 35 minutes to complete.

This training video discusses:

• The goal in coaching progressor paddling
• How paddling actually works
• Blade angles
• The phases of the stroke

While you will not be asked to carry out any specific paddle technique coaching in your L2 assessment, there will be questions and discussion about paddling technique during the day, and there are likely to be progressor paddling faults on display which you would be expected to identify and correct.  You will also be asked questions on paddle technique in the final test in this course.

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Check Understanding!

Do you understand:

• The four phases of the paddle stroke
• What positive, neutral and negative blade angle means
• Why there is no one right way to paddle!

If you’re unsure on any of these, go back and review the lesson again. Otherwise, you can move on to the next lesson.

Essential. This lesson sets the scene for the typical progressor lesson, and an overview of everything within the scope of the Level 2 qualification.

Progressor sessions can vary wildly in content, aspiration and the ability levels that you’re working with. This lesson looks at the sort of thing you can expect to be working on in progressor lessons.

This training video discusses:

• What can you teach progressors?
• What lesson formats to use
• Other considerations

There may be a question in the assessment on the general points covered in this module.

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Check Understanding!

Do you understand

• The different sorts of things we can teach progressors?

• What factors might affect the format of the session?

• The different types of session that can be used for progressor sessions?

If you’re unsure on any of these, go back and review the lesson again. Otherwise, you can move on to the next lesson.