Finding a Coach

The time has come.  You have joined a skating club.  It is now the time to find a coach for private lessons.  To start with, most skaters tend to have a single coach as they begin their skating career, who teaches all (elementary) disciplines of the sport.  As time goes on, your coach may recommend a “specialist” to help them with ice dance, or choreography, or skills or whatever, while  still remaining your “base” or primary coach.

Assuming that you are a parent, and the coach is for your child, you need to consider a number of things when making this decision.  You need to know your child, and the kind of learning style they have, as well as the kind of personality in a coach that will most enhance their learning.  Figure skating is a sport that is intensely one on one as far as the coach/skater relationship and you need to know that the coach’s philosophies mirror those that are important to you.  The only way to find that out is to have a friendly conversation with any of your club’s coaches, and talk about your child and your expectations of what you would like to see.  You also need to discuss lesson rates, and come to an agreement as to how many lessons you require.  Keep in mind that lessons are booked for a season, and that barring any unusual circumstances, changing coaches mid-season is considered very poor form.  If you would like to make a change, inform your coach of this decision, and make the change at a natural break like spring/summer or fall school.