“Exploration “Play Rules.” These rules are as follows:
(1) you shall investigate the unfamiliar until it has become familiar; (2) you shall impose a rhythmic repetition on the familiar; (3) you shall vary this repetition in as many ways as possible; (4) you shall select the most satisfying of these variations and develop these at the expense of others; (5) you shall combine and recombine variations with one another; and (6) you shall do this all for its own sake, as an end in itself.”
The “correct” way to perform a skill is frequently abandoned by top performers.
I am a teacher. A physical education teacher, a movement and martial arts teacher. And I define teaching as the cause of learning. This may happen simply because the student is ready; or it may come from a cue that was given by me or another student. Or it may have come from the environment or a constraint placed on the learner.
But most likely, it came from the practical physical experience and the sensation and assessment of what is effective by the actual performer.
I’d like to share two videos with you below. The first video is a during a friendly competition during a football game. Please notice how the “winner throws the football incorrecty. And she wins $100,000 because of it.
This second video is dear to my heart as a father that has a baseball pitcher that tends to throw more side-arm than overhead. I simply watch as coaches try to correct his form and actually make his throwing worse off.
Now, instead of being “corrected,” these movers should be applauded for solving these movement riddles in a way that was most effective and satisfying for their own individual expression.
The three books below were required reading in Human Movement Studies at Temple U. If you’re interested in skill, its development and practice design I highly recommend you check them out. I’ll link to them here as well.
