I'm surprised it has not been mentioned here yet. Excellent books exist on
"what, why, how and when" to do the things needed to fly a glider,
step-by-step. Read the "lesson for the day", discuss it, then go fly it with
an Instructor, then ask for explanations about what actually happened. Being
proactive requires knowlege.

"Gliding" by Piggott, "Flying Sailplanes" by Reichmann, and "Glider Basics"
by Knauff are such books.
Buy them all if you can.

Cheer up-there is a "learning plateau" period from time to time, which
usually occurs just before the "breakthrough".

--
Hartley Falbaum, CFIG


"Mark James Boyd" wrote in message
news:3f982d4f$1@darkstar...
Knowledge of the fundamentals of instructing is a common
requirement for all flight instructors. The FAA has produced
FAA-H-8083-9, "Aviation Instructor's Handbook" to provide
information about this subject.

For US FAA instructors, the standard for teaching is
outlined in

http://www.fergworld.com/cfi/pdf/FOI..._Reference.pdf

The Gleim FOI prep book is excellent and cheap ($9 or so).

From reading some of the posts, it seems some students do
not get enough explanation or demonstration before being
asked to do the manuever (and then doing it wrong).
It is much better to do it right the first time (the
Law of Primacy).

I like and use the technique of programmed instruction,
and do my best to get students to do things right the
first time. Key to this has been having the students
tell me what to do while I fly the plane, or sometimes
dividing duties (they do flaps and I do stick) so
they aren't overwhelmed.

Teaching is rich with techniques, principles, and
diversity. When you find an instructor that
fits your best way of learning, you'll feel comfortable.