Practice Skills Knees or Standing

[HammerNoMore]

Walter once bubbled...
Mask clearing is 1 ball, the 2nd ball. I teach it long before I introduce SCUBA. Right after the 300 yd swim/15 minute float/tread, I teach them the snorkel (1st ball). Then we put the snorkel down and pick up the mask (2nd ball) and learn to clear a mask. When I introduce SCUBA, I teach buoyancy very early, once they have pretty good buoyancy, I add the mask clearing (which they have already mastered) while swimming. That gives them two balls to juggle at once, but they are, at this point, ready for it.

Excellent Walter. Unfortunatly, you are in a minority.

James

 

[jonnythan]

Walter once bubbled...
Mask clearing is 1 ball, the 2nd ball. I teach it long before I introduce SCUBA. Right after the 300 yd swim/15 minute float/tread, I teach them the snorkel (1st ball). Then we put the snorkel down and pick up the mask (2nd ball) and learn to clear a mask. When I introduce SCUBA, I teach buoyancy very early, once they have pretty good buoyancy, I add the mask clearing (which they have already mastered) while swimming. That gives them two balls to juggle at once, but they are, at this point, ready for it.

Well that's funny. On my first OW dive I had to clear my mask a few times while swimming, and I didn't kneel down on the bottom. My instructor didn't treat me like a baby.

The vast majority of people don't need to be treated like children to be taught how to dive.. they just need to be told what they should actually be doing, and most aren't. We did our skills kneeling because the instructor was kneeling. If he told us we had to do it while hovering we would have done that instead.

 

[jbd]

to juggle from Walter. His method works quite well.

 

[HammerNoMore]

Diversauras once bubbled...


but I do teach proper buoyancy, the question is "Is that ball one or two or ???"

Proper bouyancy is 1 ball. It is the ball you start with as Walter pointed out (ok it's his 3rd ball but the first in scuba gear).

You may very well teach proper bouyancy in your classes, and I hope you do so don't take this the wrong way but:

IMHO, if your students are not able to perform the basic skills with only minor changes in depth, they have not learned proper bouyancy. Again, I'll assume yours can.

James

 

[perpet1]

Correct me if I am wrong (I probably am). Does a PADI Instructor have the ability to deviate from the script (standard OW course) and teach skills out of order?

In that case the first skill has to be mask clearing I think. I am not a PADI Instructor so let me know.

To the thread, it is all good at least you are working on your skills. I personally work most skills into my normal diving. I mix it up a lot but generally speaking I work on something about every 2 or 3 dives. It may be something simple or something that I have to go out of my way to do. I have all the certifications one needs but that does not replace profienciey....

Pete

 

[ElectricZombie]

diver5 once bubbled...
I am working on being comfortable diving so lots of work in the pool. I find I get tension headaches on my knees clearing mask etc. but ok standing up. Any reason why I can't just stand up one more open water to do. Thanks for input.

All skills should be done neutral in a horizontal position with your feet up.

 

[Tropics Diver]

ElectricZombie once bubbled...
All skills should be done neutral in a horizontal position with your feet up.

Like the two divers in the lower left of http://www.gue.com/classroom/tech.shtml

 

[MechDiver]

Tropics Diver once bubbled...
Like the two divers in the lower left of http://www.gue.com/classroom/tech.shtml

Ahh, not that I really care, but it looks like the divers are horizontal with the camera below them. So whats your point

 

[Walter]

"Does a PADI Instructor have the ability to deviate from the script (standard OW course) and teach skills out of order?"

The PADI standards allow an instructor to present skills in any order he deems best (although there is a recommended order) withing the required pool session. A PADI instructor cannot teach skills from pool session 2 prior to teaching all the skills from pool session 1, even if it logically makes sense to do so.

My class would violate PADI standards because of the order in which I teach skills (I introduce SCUBA in the 3rd pool session - PADI requires it in the 1st) does not conform to PADI's requirements. Since I'm not a PADI instructor and do not teach a PADI class, I'm not violating standards.

 

[MikeFerrara]

Ah... but If this PADI instructor happens to see his students copying him by staying off the bottom prior to mod 3 where it's required is he required to stop them?

We work on getting them horizontal from the beginning. Even if they're not perfectly neutral when they clear a mask in mod 1, we do more mask R & R later in the class. There are ways