• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Because the Family that Skis Together, Enjoys Life Together.
  • Home
  • About
    • Awards
    • Featured Author
    • Brand Ambassador
  • Brave Ski Mom Stickers
  • Contact Me

The Brave Ski Mom

Building a new generation of skiers and snowboarders.

  • Skiing
    • Skiing With Kids
    • Ski Racing
    • Learn to Ski
    • Cross Country Skiing
    • Telemark Skiing
    • Snowboarding
  • Ski Resort Reviews
    • United States
      • Alaska
      • California
      • Colorado
      • Connecticut
      • Idaho
      • Maine
      • Massachusetts
      • Michigan
      • Minnesota
      • Montana
      • Nevada
      • New Hampshire
      • New Mexico
      • New York
      • North Carolina
      • Oregon
      • Pennsylvania
      • Utah
      • Vermont
      • Washington
      • West Virginia
      • Wisconsin
      • Wyoming
    • Argentina
    • Australia
    • Austria
    • Bulgaria
    • Canada
    • Chile
    • France
    • Finland
    • Greece
    • Italy
    • Japan
    • New Zealand
  • Ski Gear Checklist and Recommendations
    • Equipment and Gear
    • Product Reviews
    • Brave Ski Mom Stickers
  • Hiking
    • Camping
  • Biking
    • Downhill Biking
    • Mountain Biking
    • Road Biking
  • Good Stuff
    • Parenting
    • Health
      • Getting in Shape
    • Reflections

Should You Teach Your Loved Ones To Ski?

November 8, 2019 by braveskimom

Photo: Loveland Ski Area
brave ski mom logo

This morning, a post I wrote for Liftopia.com went live.

I think it’s definitely worth reading in it’s entirety, but to get you started, I’ll share a few highlights.

It’s called Why You Should Never Teach Your Loved Ones To Ski, and the post provides information on:

  • Why lessons are important,
  • The perils and pitfalls of teaching a loved one,
  • Three significant advantages professional ski and snowboard instructors have over you, and
  • How many lessons are needed.

Now if you are one of those amazing people who has successfully taught a child, spouse, partner, or friend to ski and ride, please share your experiences below. You’ve got skills and patience to a degree that most of us do not. You are special, as are your loved ones.

For the rest of us, we’re better off enjoying a morning or afternoon of freeskiing while our loved ones take lessons.

(Tips on Getting Your Kids Ready for Ski and Snowboard School)

This doesn’t mean we can’t play a significant role in helping our children, spouses, partners, and friends learn to ski or snowboard. We can.

More on that at the bottom of this post.

Three Things Ski Instructors Have That Most of Us Do Not

Certification. Ski and snowboard instructors — certified in the US by Professional Ski Instructors of America (PSIA) and American Association of Snowboard Instructors (AASI) — go through a rigorous process of training and development. And it’s a process that never ends, with ongoing instruction to ensure that all instructors are on top of the latest teaching methods.

The Tools for the Job. Professional instructors know how to adapt their teaching to meet individual student needs, even in a group lesson. They are trained to listen to students, identify learning styles and keep everyone happy and having fun.

As Jennifer Simpson Weier, a PSIA Alpine Team member and ski instructor at Aspen Snowmass, puts it “Instructors have more tools to help you learn.” 

adult ski lessons killington terrain based learning
An adult learn-to-ski group getting started at Killington.

Blessed Neutrality. Here’s where most of us fall down. We really, really want our spouse, or best friend, or child to ski with us. We love skiing and we want them to love skiing.

This means we often 1) are impatient; 2) push too hard; and 3) get too emotionally invested. Objective teachers we are not.

And it’s even harder on the person we’re trying to teach. This person also wants to ski with us, but doesn’t yet have the skills. This person really wants to please us and make us happy.

It’s a recipe for disaster with the emotions of both parties bound up into pleasing the other. Yikes!

(For more on what professional instructors bring to teaching, please see the full Liftopia.com post.)

The Right Role for Friends and Family

I was recently speaking with Nathan Y. Jarvis, a PSIA children’s specialist and instructor at Park City.

I asked him what should parents do after their kids finish a ski lesson. His answers apply to both kids and adults. I hope you find them helpful.

(Wondering what it’s like to learn to ski as an adult? Here’s a personal perspective!)

Yes she needs a helmet. But the joy is unmistakable! Photo Courtesy NZSki Ltd.

Follow Up With the Instructor. Ask the instructor two questions.

First, “what is the one thing my child/friend/husband and I should play with to get better?”

If this sounds a little funny to your ears, it’s because Jarvis doesn’t want to associate skiing or snowboarding with work. He believes in the power of play. Translated this means “What is the one skill my child/friend/wife and I can practice together?”

The second question is “What runs are appropriate for my child/friend/spouse to play on?” In other words, what terrain will help reinforce her new skills, versus the terrain that will scare him and make him hate skiing.

Let the New Skier Set the Pace. This is critical. Your role is to be supportive. If the new skier doesn’t want to ski more immediately after finishing a lesson, don’t push it. Maybe it’s time to take a break for an hour, a day, or a week.

When you do get on the mountain together, keep in mind everything the instructor told you. Start on the recommended terrain and stay there if that’s what your loved one prefers. It’s better to ski the same comfortable run over and over while anchoring new skills than to lose these skills, reverting to bad habits and form, on terrain that’s too hard.

Be in Play Mode. Keep it light. Keep it fun. Make up games. And most of all, keep your eyes on the prize. You want your loved one to love skiing with you. Do whatever it takes to make sure that happens.

Hot chocolate break, anyone?

Enjoy!

© 2019, braveskimom. All rights reserved. Any use or publication of content, including photos, requires express permission.

Spread the Love (thanks!)

  • Email
  • Print
  • Tweet
  • Share on Tumblr

Related

Filed Under: Learn to Ski, Parenting, Ski School, Skiing With Kids

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. James says

    November 8, 2019 at 10:35 am

    “What runs are appropriate for my child/friend/spouse to play on?” – this is such good advice for followup question after ski lesson. Fastest way to undue a ski lesson is to take your ski buddy on the runs that are appropriate/fun for you. Save your adrenaline stoke for another day, and get your friend stoke on by skiing with them on slopes appropriate for their skills.

    • braveskimom says

      November 8, 2019 at 10:38 am

      Kind of wish I’d known that verbiage before! We adults often workify play. Silly adults.

Primary Sidebar

2023-2024 Partners

FERA
World Snow Day
FERA

Welcome

I'm Kristen, a western Colorado mom, wife and trail boss in a busy outdoor family. Our family has a passion for skiing and my goal is to provide information to help other families enjoy their skiing adventures. Whether you have tiny toddlers just learning to slide or grown children with whom you're planning a reunion, you're in the right place. Cheers!

Never Miss a Post

Enter your email address to subscribe. You'll receive notifications of new posts by email.

Follow Me

FacebookInstagram Pinterest Twitter

Today’s Most Popular Posts

  • No Snow? No Problem: Summer Skiing in North America
    No Snow? No Problem: Summer Skiing in North America
  • Bravery 101: Chairlift Safety for Parents and Kids
    Bravery 101: Chairlift Safety for Parents and Kids
  • Pick Ups Made Easy: The Kinderlift Ski Vest for Kids
    Pick Ups Made Easy: The Kinderlift Ski Vest for Kids
  • Catching Up with US Ski Team Legend Ted Ligety
    Catching Up with US Ski Team Legend Ted Ligety
  • Ski Vacation 101: Feeding the Family
    Ski Vacation 101: Feeding the Family
  • Ski Fashion Preview: Women's Ski Jackets, Sorel Boots and More (Obermeyer Giveaway)
    Ski Fashion Preview: Women's Ski Jackets, Sorel Boots and More (Obermeyer Giveaway)

Categories

Footer

Recent Tweets

My Tweets

Featured In

snowlink world snow day snowkidz
liftopia mtn town learn to ski and snowboard mom trends
Copyright © 2025 · Genesis Framework by StudioPress · Affiliate Disclosure · Product Review & Giveaway Policy · Guest Post Policy · Privacy Policy · Login
 

Loading Comments...