Archery With Kevin Healy
Kevin has been instructing Archery with the students at Saipoyi Elementary School in Standoff Alberta. He takes the children in groups of 10 and has them each stand beside a holder that contains the arrows the children will learn to shoot. Kevin explains, “The arrow holders are called Quivers.”
He has the children stand along a rope on the ground that is formed as a line. The children line up along the rope and are to stay behind the rope line at all times for safety. Kevin says, “First things, first. SAFETY!”
Kevin makes sure all of the children get familiar with the line of rope that sits in front of them on the ground. It is called the ‘Safety Line’. The children are not to cross that line until he tells them its time.
When all the children have lined up with their bows, he instructs them to make a hook with their first three index fingers.
He teaches, “The hook of your fingers is going to pull this area on the strings of the bow. This area is the finger tab. There are three notches on the tab. The first finger goes on the top tab, then the second two go onto the bottom two tabs. Then there is a space in between.”
“Do you know why? That is where the arrow goes. When you take the arrow, you take it at the base of the feathers then pull it up. “
“This is what it will look like, how you hold your arrow. Your bow should be at your side. Then bring the arrow up over the bow and put the end in the space between the finger tabs.
Listen, it should make a noise.
Now I want everyone to stand looking at the back wall. Draw your arrows and bring your bow up twisting toward the target.”
Kevin and teachers show the children how to pull the bow string back to create tension with the arrow before shooting.
Many of the children were successful hitting their targets.
When all of the arrows have been shot, Kevin tells all of the children it is safe to pass over the safety line to obtain their arrows. They are all color-coded for each child. He instructs them that when they put their arrows back into the Quivers, the feathers should be in an upward position.