What to Expect in Ski School

Ski school is a rich tapestry of experience for children. They will face newness, be pushed (within their limits), overcome challenges, have tons of fun, and learn many lessons and skills along the way. 

Sometimes, ski school is hard. On a blustery and snowy day, it can be cold, wet, and difficult to see where you are going through the white sheet of snow. Clio Wohlgenant, a ski instructor of three years, shares, “I find that those physical sensations of skiing can be sort of overwhelming for the little ones.” Even if it’s a bluebird day, the combination of new experiences and risk is a lot for a young person to handle. 

Luckily, ski instructors like Wohlgenant are trained to handle the difficulties that couple skiing. Ski instructors have three main objectives that they prioritize: keeping the kids safe, promoting a good time, and fostering a learning environment. With these elements at the top of mind for instructors throughout the day, kids are sure to get the most out of their ski school experience. 

Safety as a Top Priority at Ski School

Ski instructors are trained to keep kids safe, close by, and together. For anyone who has skied with a group of young children, this may seem like an impossible task of herding cats. Ski instructors could teach a master class in “cat herding”, because they have many tools in their tool belts and backup plans should a child be separated from the group somehow.

In order to keep her group together, Wohlgenant lets her kids know at the beginning of every lesson that they are a team. She tells them that one of the major goals of the day is to ski together and help each other out. That way, if some kids are faster or better than others they will lean into leading the group and helping everyone stick together, instead of getting antsy and wanting to go faster. 

Ski instructors also have plenty of activities and mountain hacks that are designed to keep the group together from the moment they step onto the mountain to the last run of the day. For example, the instructors will be sure to ride on the chair lift with the least experienced members of the group, emphasize that everyone should wait at the top for them, and facilitate ski games that end with the whole group gathered in a visible, familiar spot. 

In the rare event that a child does get separated from the group, the instructors will immediately initiate a search to locate them. These days, most young children in ski school wear trackers on their legs or in their vest so that they are easy to locate. Instructors will work with ski patrol and utilize the tracking device to locate the child. Luckily, these situations rarely occur. And when they do, emergency protocols are already in place to ensure that the child is found as quickly as possible.

These small tricks and embedded safety systems play a huge role in keeping the entire group safe. When safety is a foundation for the ski day, fun is able to take precedence for the children.

The Fun Factor

For Wohlgenant, having a good time with the kids is of utmost importance. She states, “I want to make sure skiing is really, thoroughly enjoyable for them.” Everything about the mountain becomes magical, from the fluffy powder to the “flying couch in the sky” (aka, the chairlift). In order to bring about utmost enjoyment, Wohlgenant’s group takes it slow, has tons of breaks, and receives plenty of rewards for a day-well-skied. 

Luckily, the mountain is built for fun. Kids even get free hot chocolate at lodges, and Wohlgenant is sure to use this as a “teaching tool”. She shares that having “those resets where we can go inside, loosen up the boots, have a cup of hot cocoa, and remind everyone that this is a really fun place” builds excitement to get back out there. Fun moments such as these make the more difficult moments suddenly seem not only doable, but also enjoyable.

Learning Lessons

Fun may be the number one priority, but learning follows closely behind. At the beginning of each lesson, Wohlgenant will say to her participants: “First of all, let’s have some fun. Second of all, let’s prove to ourselves that we have the skill to do the next challenging thing.”

If a kid is scared on their skis, she is empathetic and affirming. She acknowledges their feelings by letting them know, “Yes, this is scary!” and telling them about a time when she was scared while skiing as a child because she couldn’t see the bottom of a run. Wohlgenant knows that dismissing a child’s fears doesn’t do any good: “Whether it’s a fear of skiing or a fear of being away from your parents for the day, I want to acknowledge that those fears are real.”

Then, In order to encourage kids to partake in a daunting challenge, Wohlgenant will offer options to make the child feel safe. She will pose questions like: “Would it be better if I ski right in front of you or behind you on this run?” or let them know: “If you get out of control, I’ll catch you.” Sometimes, she even does demonstrations: “Do you want me to ski off the edge so you can see what happens?” Then, she will go off the edge so the kids can see how she lands gently in the soft snow. Taking these steps to empathize, give options, and demonstrate helps kids take the leap to try new things.

By prioritizing safety while listening to kids' needs and fears, Wohlgenant becomes a ski kid whisperer. She knows that the day will involve high flying on the chair in the sky, cold hands, many cups of delicious hot chocolate, following the leader, tight boots, bathroom breaks, Simon says, sometimes tears and always laughter. The question for her is: “What will happen next, and how will I respond as the instructor to best facilitate safety, fun, and learning?” Then, she reads the room, even when the room is covered in 24 inches of new snow with a visibility that makes you feel like you’re inside a ping pong ball.

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