 Poster: A snowHead
|
|
Long story but essentially our 4.5 year old is pretty unhappy in his ESI ski school in Flaine. On the first day two random skiers stayed back with him to tell us we needed to report the instructor for shouting & handling our child aggressively & that they’d watched the inappropriate behaviour for 30 minutes. We didn’t know what to make of it because we also thought it was unusual 2 other skiers hanging around him. The age range is up to 8yrs so it’s hard on him, there are 4 kids total. Before we booked we asked them about the more junior class rather than the ourson equivalent, & that we wanted a similar age range. They said it would be fine & there would be a lower class to go into if he didn’t get on. There is no lower class now, ESF poiu poiu is full as we already asked this morning as we had a bad feeling about this instructor. Today she comes back with them all & states he does not fit with me. I think the person running the show is good friends with this older uncaring instructor. Unfortunately our child is sensitive & does pick up easily when people don’t like him, she doesn’t even make eye contact with the kids or gesture them in friendly ways. So far no solutions have been offered even though we were pointlessly asked to ring them & we don’t know what on earth to do given still 4 days left. It’s not like he can’t ski just unfortunately stuck with some horrid lady that we didn’t even like on first meeting, although we would of made sure not to express that to our child. Any other ski schools that would be worth ringing or are we basically stuck unless they offer an alternative which at the moment doesn’t seem to exist, hence why we’ve heard nothing? We don’t have a car.
Last edited by Poster: A snowHead on Mon 25-12-23 13:39; edited 3 times in total
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
|
@Rh2205, change the title to say ski schools rather than “companies”, its pretty ambiguous.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
|
@Rh2205, sounds crappy...just ski with the boy and abandon ski school this time
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
|
Nothing to suggest but sympathies. Sounds miserable for you all. Are you skiers? Could you teach/ play with him yourselves so he has good memories of the holiday? I'm not skiing this time but hyper- anxious 11 year old granddaughter was knocked off a steep drag lift this morning by a ski school child who couldn't cope. It took ages and a promise of chips to induce her to try again.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
I would say we aren’t actually good enough to teach him, both didn’t take up skiing until adults  . We did do a green run with him after his lesson today & yesterday so at least he’s not totally traumatised and we want him to end each day with a positive experience.
Our child is cautious, he wouldn’t knock any one over and he’s also only 16kg. That’s why she probably doesn’t like him because he’s slow.
I just cannot understand an instructor saying he does not fit with me & ask us to go elsewhere & then no one actually offering up an alternative because they didn’t count on the other ski schools being full before they said it, and they then asked me on the phone well why aren’t we full... They just want us to walk away basically. I would prefer the mean instructor walked away and they found an instructor more able to cope, there’s only 4 kids, surely they can work around the differing stamina’s.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
Don’t sweat it. If you want them to have lessons then get a few private lessons with the money back from the group ones. Its a big enough resort that there should be some available.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
What @ster, says.
I had a bad experience with ESF in Samoens with a sensitive daughter who didn’t gel with the military school approach favoured by some French instructors. Tried a day with Dad instructing, that was equally disastrous. Went back to ESF used 3 days refund on group lessons for a few hours private with a super friendly instructor and it worked out great.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
|
|
we already asked at ESF, only afternoon 121’s. Really not suitable for a 4 year old. They just want to have down time in the room at this time. Considering no call back from ESI I assume it’s a similar story. We can only really try this contact above & the tourist office, I’m mindful it’s Christmas Day at the moment so not expecting to hear much back!!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
May not help as we were after instruction for my children one of which is starting to move off piste and the other was able to do Red runs (and is ASD and dyspraxic). We used Freedom Snowsports
https://m.facebook.com/profile.php/?id=100045700821232
This was message I got from them for this season
Hi Nicola, I'm Marino, your ski instructor in Flaine. I want to tell you that next winter I will always be in the Grand Massif, Saint Gervais, Chamonix, Les Gets ski areas.
I am waiting for you with enthusiasm and desire to improve by skiing together.
If you are interested in some lessons you can write me here or go to the site:
https://www.book.ski/private/flaine/#loaded
Given time of year may.be fully booked also may not cater to younger skiers
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
|
@Rh2205, forget them, try skibro or checkyeti.
|
|
|
|
|
|
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
|
|
Thanks all for the help we will try some others tomorrow, not a lot going at present even 121’s. Days usually fairly written off after 3pm when there’s a small amount of limited availability for his age range. Forgetting our only option is pretty hard right now given time of year, no idea what’s going to happen tomorrow morning!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Rh2205, chill..its a holiday. Enjoy the time together. Its not the end of the world
|
|
|
|
|
|
You know it makes sense.
|
|
Find a really quiet easy little piste and just have fun following my leader. Big curvy turns. For a short while, then have a hot chocolate or go tobogganing. It doesn't matter if he makes little progress, as long as he has happy memories.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
|
@pam w, this!
100pct correct.
At that age it is ALL about happy times and happy memories.
Progress this year will be totally lost by next year...vut happy memories that are regularly reinforced (" you like skiing" etc etc etc) will set you all up for next year when progress will be made that sticks.
It seems like you'll just have to write off these lessons and compromise your holiday...c'est la vie I'm afraid.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Poster: A snowHead
|
If you can get Catherine as per w@JDL65 you should do so.
My kids started off with her.
I say "kids" they are 33 and 29 and both became professional ski instructors who worked all over the world...Catherine started the whole thing!
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
Hmm we go skiing again in 3 weeks. Trying to stay positive!! I asked him what he enjoyed most today as we did a lot including swimming, watching santa abseil down a building, a pyro show, meeting Santa, sledding & he said skiing with mummy after the lesson. He hasn’t not asked to attend his lessons but it feels like he is being kicked off by them as they want to take the others higher, so we’ve got to show face as we haven’t been told otherwise. This is going to be very confusing for him  . Not least because he’s asked repeatedly to go higher up the mountain.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
|
@Rh2205, why will it be confusing for him? He's 4...he'll accept what you tell him. ..make something up if you have to. You are over thinking this
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
| holidayloverxx wrote: |
| @Rh2205, why will it be confusing for him? He's 4...he'll accept what you tell him. ..make something up if you have to. You are over thinking this |
+1. Isn’t not armageddon.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
| holidayloverxx wrote: |
| @Rh2205, why will it be confusing for him? He's 4...he'll accept what you tell him. ..make something up if you have to. You are over thinking this |
This.
Treat this as if your family got lucky. In that on day one you discovered an utterly unsuitable instructor who bullied your loved one, the damage very limited and well done to the kind passer-by’s.
Our kids in PSV were subjected briefly to a dragon at around the same age. We chanced across our crying son trailing behind on a flat, age 4, the dictator bellowing 50 yards ahead, her version of ‘tough love’. We turned it into a family joke about her bad moods, she was legendary, all the other instructors in the school over the ensuing years were exemplary.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
Take him higher up the mountain yourselves, in a gondola where you can stomp around in the snow, maybe build a snowman, admire the view, have a drink and a snack and go down again.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| pam w wrote: |
| Take him higher up the mountain yourselves, in a gondola where you can stomp around in the snow, maybe build a snowman, admire the view, have a drink and a snack and go down again. |
Good advice, many visitors to top of gondola at highest point (ignoring Fred) of Flaine without skiing down.
In addition, probably one of the absolute easiest route back to the village by turning left out of top station onto "Serpentine" blue piste. If they go up there, most of the ski schools will use that as introduction for early skiers.
Check it out yourself for reassurance and to judge it first. Likely you'll have to push/pull him across the top at points with the gradient so gentle. It's hugely wide, enabling very easy use of traverse turns to never have problem with speed and skills.
You can take as long as you want, Cafè restaurant 2/3 way down to aim for, it's genuinely one of the best routes you could have available.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
As an update, after the EIS instructor unprofessionally told us to find another school but no one called back from management, we turned up today at the meet point, our child sees the old instructor & immediately starts crying. But they go in & get some young happy man out of the hut as his new instructor, and pair him with an older struggling boy. He’s happy as anything, not a single tear shed as soon as the new one said hello. When we collected today he was smiling & said his instructor is much better than the old one. It’s a shame the saga that preceded it but at least they have done something to salvage the situation, though in fairness even that could of been done better but it was Christmas Day so I’ll let them off.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
|
Good 
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
@Rh2205, result
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
|
@Rh2205, pleased to hear it. A long time ago my 6 year old had a bad experience with a dragon in Flaine, but it was ESF not ESI . It nearly put him off skiing for life. He's 34 next weekend and is out skiing with my husband right now.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
