Written by:

Holly Macdonald

Date:

June 10, 2009

026My family and I have acquired a puppy. This is our first family dog and we are doing clicker training. As someone who is very tuned into learning + training, here is what I’ve learned about my own learning:

  • I learn best when I take my own notes and organize things in ways that make sense to me
  • I like to practice and talk myself through things
  • I like to have a coach who can give me lots of feedback when I’m doing it wrong
  • I am hyper-aware of what I do wrong (and beat myself up over it)
  • I don’t give myself enough credit when I do things right
  • I am more of a kinesthetic (hands on) learner than an auditory one

Now, what have I learned about training (OK, its dog training, so not the same, but some parallels):

  • Be consistent
  • Be timely
  • Provide feedback on what you want
  • Praise works
  • You can’t train if your learner is unfocused
  • Mood affects learning
  • Telling ain’t training (right Mr. Stolovitch), especially when it’s a dog!
  • Your reward is recognizing when “they got it”