Sailing Lessons

Writing Lesson Plans
Sailing Lessons
What kind of structure would sailing lessons have?

Animations by S. Holtrop 1997.

	Attention-getter. Anticipatory set. Setting the stage. Call it what you want. --In this case the boat is sailing backward! What can be done about this problem? Understanding the problem and it's solution are what sailing lessons are all about. Lesson Goals (objectives): Understand why sailboats move the way they do. Label the boat's parts, describe their functions, set up the boat properly. Learn and practice safe and enjoyable boating. Successfully sail upwind, downwind, and across the wind. Get out of irons.
	Information giving. To talk about how a boat goes and how to be safe and clever on one, we need a common vocabulary: Hull Mast Boom Mainsail Jibsail Centerboard Rudder
	Start with the easiest skills. *Reaching* is the easiest way to sail. What is reaching? It's sailing with the wind from the side, either side. Why does it work (instead of the boat going sideways)? Low pressure on the front of the airfoil-shaped *sail* pulls the boat forward as the wind splits around both the front and back of the sail. Meanwhile the *centerboard* provides lateral (sideways) resistance underwater.
	Add slightly tougher stuff. *Running* seems pretty easy-looking too. Just go with the flow. No airfoil effect, though. Just a primitive blowing in the wind! Perception phenomenon: going the same direction as the wind and waves doesn't feel as fast. Also, the boat's not as stable as when there's steady side pressure. The boom flops etc. So running isn't as simple as it looks.
	Get to the challenges. *Tacking--now that's putting theory into practice. Most boats can't sail closer than 45 degrees into the wind. (90 is reaching. 180 is running.) Changing tacks (zig zigging) is called coming about.*
	Point out the pitfalls. *"In irons"*--sailing backwards because the sail is not catching enough wind from the side. This can happen with an unsuccessful attempt to come about.
	Model safe and effective skills. Then let students practice their new knowledge.

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In these sailing lessons, do you see evidence or possibilities for Hunter's lesson elements:

Setting the stage?
Stated objectives?
Instructional input?
Modeling?
Checking for comprehension?
Guided practice?
Independent practice?

Links to other Lesson Planning pages:

    Lesson Plan Main Page
   Anatomy of a Lesson Plan: Seven Elements of a Lesson Plan (Hunter)
   Anatomy of a Lesson Plan: Critical Thinking (Bloom's Taxonomy)
   Anatomy of a Lesson Plan: Multiple Intelligences--7 Ways of Knowing (Gardner)
   Anatomy of a Lesson Plan: Instructional Scaffolding (Bruner; Langer & Applebee)
   Teachers' Roles: What happens to learning with different teacher behaviors?
   Seating Arrangements: How do different classroom arrangements affect learning?
   Sailing Lessons: See how teaching sailing is broken down into lesson components
   Spoonfeeding: Don't!

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(Be sure to give credit for borrowed ideas if you're doing lesson plans for a class!)

Dr. Holtrop's Page