A pause is a thing to do, not a thing to wait for: stop the rod, say “one”, and only then start forward. Count it aloud, put gates up so the stop has a target, and praise the pause before you ask for anything smoother.

What the instructor says

• Count to one. “When you get to here, I want you to stop and count to one” before coming forward — “or hi mom, or whatever.” The count gives the beginner a target they can hit.
• Gates. Put two noodles up as gates and have them stop at the gate, still saying one.
• Praise the pause, then smooth. Praise the pause first; only then ask for a smooth acceleration. Before the smooth cast, go back to the paintbrush drill or simple pantomime.
• One step at a time. In structured practice one the “hi mom” pause is added as its own step before the sequence moves on.

Putting it to work

1. Set the stop point and have them say “one” at it.
2. Add two noodle gates so the stop is visible.
3. Praise the stop before you touch the forward stroke.
4. If the forward cast collapses, go back to the paintbrush drill or pantomime.

Source

From the FFI CI walkthrough series by Dayle Mazzarella (Chapter 3 — FFI Casting Instructor Certification Tasks, Fly Fishing Coach International), lesson 23, 00:03:26, and lesson 15 part 2, 00:05:26. See the video library for the series and the CI exam section for the teaching tasks; terms follow the FFI Fly Casting Definitions.