What happened to 'slow flight', 'ground reference maneuvers',
and 'traffic pattern' instruction and practice?

Sounds as if your instructor is doing the old 'walking before
crawling' routine.

Sometimes that's a good idea. At least for me, if I have a framework
into which to put a lesson, I absorb it better. In this case, a few
stalls and a few landings, could set up a framework in which slow flight
and such makes sense.

Not everyone learns the same way.

Jose
--
"Never trust anything that can think for itself, if you can't see where
it keeps its brain." (chapter 10 of book 3 - Harry Potter).
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