# Training progress charts



## lil_fuzzy (Aug 16, 2010)

Do any of you keep training progress charts? If so, which one do you use, and how do you decide on the different criteria you want to work on?

Would love to see some images to get some ideas. I feel like my training sessions are very unorganised and that a lot of the time I get nowhere for a long time.


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## wvasko (Dec 15, 2007)

Got no images, but I have always kept a daily journal on all dogs trained because at the end of the month of training you will have trouble remembering what dog did on 1st day of training. Nothing fancy just something explaining what you did and what dog did.


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## Poly (Sep 19, 2007)

lil_fuzzy said:


> Do any of you keep training progress charts? If so, which one do you use, and how do you decide on the different criteria you want to work on?
> 
> Would love to see some images to get some ideas. I feel like my training sessions are very unorganised and that a lot of the time I get nowhere for a long time.


We absolutely keep a log- helps us to remember what is going well and what isn't.

We have a general 'training plan' in mind each week - what we are going to emphazize for that particular week - and the log help us with that also.

It's not anything fancy - just a Word template we came up with.

Some of the items you may want to record:

Obvious stuff - dog’s name, date, time of day, weather conditions if outdoors. 

The location of the training session ( e.g, house, backyard, park, training school, tracking course - whatever detail you need to help you)

Dog's frame of mind (your estimate of his mental state when he starts the session...anxious, excited, playful, distracted, etc),

A list of the exercises or concepts worked on, the learning level* and how well they went** 

A short analysis of the session (what worked, what didn’t, and why) and the steps to take for the next training session.
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* Whatever suits you - we use 1=introduction, 2= learning, 3= proofing, 4=applying. [We don't use 4 all that often - only for very complex behaviors] 

** Also whatever suits you - we use E=excellent, S=Satisfactory, U= Unsatisfactory.


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## lil_fuzzy (Aug 16, 2010)

Cool, thanks

I knew there was something else I meant to ask... Do you make weekly or monthly plans for what you want to work on for that week/month? And if so, do you work on every behaviour every week, or do you work on 2-3 behaviour one week, then another 2-3 the next week?


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## petpeeve (Jun 10, 2010)

lil_fuzzy said:


> .... do you work on every behaviour every week, or do you work on 2-3 behaviour one week, then another 2-3 the next week?


I think that really depends on the particular dog, and that dog's capacity for uptake of info. Some dogs sponge everything up at lightning speed, other dogs may require more time for processing new information.

While I'm here .. coincidentally, I recently came across some old paperwork in my rubblepile (lol) from the Baileys, and I find their mantra of "Think, Plan, Do" to be a very effective approach to 'organizing' training sessions and teaching new behaviours. If you haven't heard of it, it goes like this ...

*Think, Plan, Do (three seperate behaviours, don't mix them): First let your imagination soar; consider every training idea without concern for practicality. Next, filter out the wild impractical schemes and build a detailed do-able pathway to the desired behaviour. Finally, carry out your plan.*

In essence, I believe there are two perspectives you should keep in mind .. # 1 - where you've come from (a log book or journal will help with this aspect) and # 2 - where you're going (Think Plan Do will help with this)


(^ rogue smilie ^ ... where did that come from ? I think I'll leave it in, everybody can use an extra smile, right ? lol)


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## KBLover (Sep 9, 2008)

I keep telling myself I need to do this, or at least make some kind of "class schedule" for him.

Then I forget. 

Then I just remember what we're doing and how it went last time.


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