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On TAGteach and Skill-Building

    This entry is part 3 of 3 in the series CT for Shooting

    Okay, I was a bit slow to adopt TAGteach when I first encountered it in the early 2000s, but I’ve caught on, and I’ve been applying it more and more in my life. Sometimes I use TAGteach principles without the actual tagger (clicker), simply because that’s what I have to work with, but even without a key tool the principles still work. A marker can be many things, not just a clicker, and even with no marker (or instructor) at all, the concepts can be turned to Focus Points instead of TAGpoints and used the same way.

    I’ve used clicker-less TAGteach backstage at a major performance event and with kids on the verge of losing it. And last weekend I had a reminder of how very useful TAGteach can be for myself.

    Surf’s Up! TAGteach without a TAGteach instructor

      Following the amazing-as-always ClickerExpo, I headed southeast to join friends and family for a Caribbean vacation. It was delightful; home was 4 degrees Fahrenheit when I left for San Francisco, where the rainy 60s felt lovely, and 80 degrees on a sandy beach felt positively euphoric.

      And I learned to surf.

      This candy is not for eating! — Part 3

        This entry is part 3 of 3 in the series This Candy Is Not For Eating
        English: The US version of the Smarties candy.
        (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

        Now that Halloween has passed, kids (and adults) all over the country are digging through bags of loot. Some candy is definitely preferred over others. Now might be a good time for a good candy blog post.

        So, remember that fantastically foul candy which made a better punisher than reinforcer?  Things aren’t always so black and white…!

        Laev and our houseguest McCoy the Skeleton

        Happy Halloween! Tricks & Treats for You

          Michael Jackson dancing with the living dead.
          Michael Jackson dancing with the living dead. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

          In the spirit of the holiday, I’d like to present you, Dear Reader, with a trick, a tag, and a treat.

          What, you’re not familiar with the middle part of that phrase? It’s a new Halloween tradition. Trust me on this.

          Want to know what that undead-Michael Jackson has to do with all this? Read on. (Hint: he’s part of the tag bit.)

          book keyboard button

          I Was Going To Write A Blog Post, And Then I Realized I Didn’t Have To

            book keyboard button
            photo (c) Fotolia, purchased for use

            I’ve been working really, really hard on a writing project. Dedicated. I do most of this work late at night, and to be honest, there were nights when I’d probably have enjoyed snuggling with the Dobermans and watching a movie rather than yanking out my hair and wondering how to shave a few thousand more words.

            I was thinking of writing a blog post on OC and staying on task with this project — an acceptable form of procrastination, perhaps? — when I stumbled upon another blog post and realized I didn’t have to write it. It was already there for me.

            How Operant Conditioning Sold my Pitch

              Kitsune-TsukiI spent last weekend immersed wholly in words. I don’t talk about it much here, but I also write fiction, and I’ve decided lately to put more effort into that area. So two things happened last week — my novelette Kitsune-Tsuki came out on ebook, and I attended a writers’ conference.

              TAG! I’m It! (self TAGteach for skiing)

                Skier carving a turn off piste
                This is not me. Not quite. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

                I mentioned in a recent post that I would share again the story of my learning to ski. It’s a great example of contrasting traditional instruction versus TAGteach and the resulting… results. It’s also kinda humorous, because it features me tumbling tail over teakettle down a snowy slope more than a few times, and that’s never not funny. Enjoy!

                One of my targets from today

                TAGteach for Firearm Safety and Shooting

                  This entry is part 1 of 3 in the series CT for Shooting
                  Stock image. (My target’s at the bottom of the post.)

                  It took me a long, long time of deciding first to actually buy a handgun and then to choose a model. The entire year and a half was filled with behavioral self-assessment and training plans — this was one area where my professional skills have been put to good use!

                  Sound OC for Firearm Safety

                    This entry is part 2 of 3 in the series CT for Shooting

                    In mid-October, I embarked upon a new learning experience — handling and shooting a firearm. I spent nearly a year and a half researching this prospect, deciding if it were a path I wanted to start down, and I’d decided firmly that if I were to have a gun, I would train to a high level of fluency and competency.

                    Imagine my delight, then, when among the usual trash advice dispensed to newbies in any sport or hobby, I encountered some truly fantastic, behaviorally-sound recommendations for learning to shoot and handle safely.