The Power of Writing Your Own Lesson Plans (and Why It Works)

Oct 10, 2025

When it comes to preparing for the Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) check-ride, lesson plans are one of the most misunderstood parts of training.
Too many applicants focus on presentation over purpose — buying pre-made binders instead of creating their own.

It looks great on the surface. But the problem? It doesn’t represent you.
And when the examiner starts digging in, that becomes painfully obvious.



The Mistake That Keeps Showing Up

In the Final Approach Course, we’ve seen it more times than we can count.
A pilot shows up with solid flight skills, great communication, and confidence in the cockpit — but when it comes to the ground portion, they pull out a pre-printed lesson plan set they bought online.

Everything looks professional: laminated tabs, color-coded pages, perfect formatting.
But it’s not about how it looks — it’s about what you know.

Kenny explains it best:

“The learning happens while you build it. That’s where the value is. You don’t learn the material by swiping your credit card. You learn it by writing it down, teaching it, and understanding how to explain it.”

The check-ride is not about reading someone else’s words. It’s about showing mastery through your own.


What the Examiner Really Wants to See

Examiners are sharp. They’ve seen thousands of lesson plans — handwritten, digital, and store-bought — and they can tell immediately when it’s not the applicant’s work.

What they’re looking for isn’t perfection. It’s ownership.

They want to see that you’ve taken the time to write out your own plans, to understand how each lesson flows, and to be able to adapt in real-time when they throw you a curveball question.

A store-bought plan can’t do that for you.
A handwritten one can.

That’s why Kenny pushes every CFI applicant to take the time to write — even if it’s messy, even if it’s slow — because repetition builds confidence.


The Power of Writing, Learning, and Teaching

It’s no secret that writing your own lesson plans cements the information in a way nothing else can.
When you handwrite, you’re processing, organizing, and teaching yourself while you prepare to teach others.

That’s what separates the CFIs who barely scrape by from the ones who go on to train confident pilots.



At H.O.G.S., we’re all about simplifying the process — making it easier to understand, but never cutting corners. That’s why we offer free resources that help you start building your own foundation the right way:

📘 Private Pilot 101 – A Helicopter Training Blueprint
The book that lays out the fundamentals every pilot (and future instructor) should master before teaching others.

📕 Top 10 Check-Ride Tips PDF
Real-world tips from years of successful check-rides — the same ones Kenny uses in every Final Approach Course.

📗 H.O.G.S. Study Guide
A structured way to quiz yourself and reinforce your weak spots before you step into the examiner’s office.

📙 Helicopter Maneuver Guide
A quick-reference manual for common maneuvers — perfect for building into your own lesson plans.

These tools are free for a reason — because they’re designed to help you build, not just copy.


The Real CFI Success Formula

Kenny’s message in this video is simple but powerful:
If you want to pass your check-ride and actually teach with confidence — build your lesson plans yourself.

Don’t outsource your learning.
Don’t shortcut your understanding.
And don’t hand an examiner someone else’s work with your name on it.

The best instructors aren’t the ones with the fanciest binder — they’re the ones who know their material inside and out.

That’s the CFI success formula:
Write it. Learn it. Teach it.


📲 Learn more about the Final Approach Course: https://www.FinalApproachCourse.com
💬 Have questions? Text Heather at (574) 767-1797 for scheduling and availability.