- PREREQUISITES & PATHWAY
- RESOURCES
- EVENT DESCRIPTION
- COURSE SCHEDULE
- PERFORMANCE STANDARDS
- ASSESSMENT FORM
Prerequisites:
- Maintain a current membership with PSIA-AASI
- Alpine, Snowboard, Cross Country, Telemark, or Adaptive Level 1 Certification
Pathway:
Step 1: Pass the online Children's Specialist 1 Knowledge Review β please allow 24-hours for your profile to update before attempting to register.
Step 2: Register for and pass the 2-day Childrenβs Specialist Level 1 Exam
*Exceptions to the prerequisites and pathway can only be made through petition.
- Teaching Children Snowsports (2021)
- Childrenβs Instruction Manual, 2nd edition (2008)
- Core Concepts for Snowsports Instructors (2008)
- Teaching Snowsports Manual (2018)
- The most current PSIA-AASI discipline-specific manual (Alpine, Nordic, Adaptive, Snowboard)
The Childrenβs Specialist Level 1 Exam is a 2-day event that explores the CAP model (how kids think, move, and feel) and teaching progressions for children in different age zones.
We will also explore childrenβs movement patterns βkids moveology,β and work on your own skiing/riding skills and improvement.
On day 2 we cover building kid-friendly teaching progressions with the Play Drill Adventure Summary method as well as focus on your own skiing/riding development.
Weβll finish the day with informal group teaching presentations. This is a combined discipline (Alpine & Snowboard) pass/fail event.
DAY 1
8-9:30 β Registration, introduction, the itinerary for the 2 days
9-12 β On-hill session
- Discuss how kids in different age zones approach the world.
- Explore the cognitive and affective aspects of each age zone and what methodology works best for teaching each zone.
- Discuss dealing with good and bad behavior in kids lessons. (May be done in small groups where each group explores the characteristics of an age zone. Using real life examples they are familiar with may be helpful).
- Explore movement patterns of kids in different age zones (βmoveologyβ).
- Set expectations and develop methodology for building skills which take them from the real to the ideal. (This should be applicable to all kids β snowboard and skiing).
- Compare with adult movement patterns and adult rate of development. (Use real life problem situations the participants bring to the forum or watch kids on the hill).
DAY 2
8:30 β 11:30 On Hill Session
- Explore building kid-friendly progressions.
- Create fun and appropriate skill building game progressions.
- Play, Drill, Adventure, Summary, and Cue words. (Lots of examples will be given for new instructors and more experienced instructors can share their expertise).
11:30-12:30β LUNCH
12:30-3:30 β On Hill Session
- Informal Presentation of individual creative progressions assigned on the evening of day 1. These will be presented on chair rides or on the hill depending on the participantβs level of comfort.
- Skiing and/or demo improvement. (This session should be light and fun but strongly guided by the trainer. It can be more interactive if the group has some experience. This is not a test!)
3:30-4 β Wrap up and brief question and answer session.
4:00 β Candidate assessment and congratulations!
- PREREQUISITES & PATHWAY
- RESOURCES
- EVENT DESCRIPTION
- COURSE SCHEDULE
- PERFORMANCE STANDARDS
- ASESSMENT FORM
Prerequisites:
- Maintain a current membership with PSIA-AASI
- Children's Specialist 1
- Alpine, Snowboard, Cross Country, Telemark, or Adaptive Level 2/3 Certification
Pathway:
Step 1: Complete the online Childrenβs Specialist 2 Workbook & hand-in the printable section on the first day of the exam. (free!).
Step 2: Register for and pass the 3-day Childrenβs Specialist Level 2 Exam
*Exceptions to the prerequisites and pathway can only be made through petition.
- Teaching Children Snowsports (2021)
- Childrenβs Instruction Manual, 2nd edition (2008)
- Core Concepts for Snowsports Instructors (2008)
- Teaching Snowsports Manual (2018)
- The most current PSIA-AASI discipline-specific manual (Alpine, Nordic, Adaptive, Snowboard)
The Childrenβs Specialist Level 2 Exam is a 3-day event that assists instructors in designing and implementing creative, appropriate, and movement-oriented lesson plans for children 4-14.
These lesson plans are focused at the high intermediate through the expert level of the selected discipline.
The idea is for the participants to demonstrate their ability to understand and use the teaching principles provided in the Childrenβs Manual and other materials to develop polished and creative lesson plans.
Each participant gives a full presentation lasting 45 minutes, with follow-up feedback from the group on the last day of the course.
Participants should have an in-depth understanding of the CAP Model utilizing previous lesson experiences. Real vs. Ideal movement patterns at higher skill levels will be reviewed. Creative and experimental lesson planning will be emphasized. This course is a very interactive, multi-discipline (Alpine & Snowboard), pass/fail event.