Melee Curriculum: starting from zero

It seems like most melee players learned the same way I did: started casual, developed a ton of bad habits, then spent years trying to unlearn those habits.

Now, I work as a gymnastics coach, and the way you most effectively train high-level gymnasts is not by letting them casually learn things and then correcting bad habits; rather, you anticipate common bad habits and then design the training to avoid those before they take hold. You start with simple, basic technique, and then take these basic building blocks and string them together in ways that are increasingly complex, always taking care to stop bad habits from taking hold before they ever really get ingrained. The progress made in the sport of gymnastics over the years is the result of generation after generation of coaches identifying -- and figuring out how to preempt and avoid avoid -- bad habits.

So could a similar approach be used in Melee?

To phrase it differently: if you were teaching somebody melee who had never before picked up a controller or seen the game, what would be the optimal curriculum? How could we teach the next generation of melee players such that they develop good technique and avoid bad habits from the get-go?

Here's sort of my rough idea, with the disclaimer that I am not by any means an expert at this game (and some notes and questions as I go):

1a) basic movement. Jumping, walking, double-jumping 1b) basic grounded attacking. Jab/neutral-B, side A/B, D-tilt/down-B, up-tilt/up-B, dash attacks. 1c) smashing. Jumping with the control stick, dashing, and smash attacks Question 1: would it be ideal to introduce claw grip from the get-go? Might make it harder at first, but waiting longer would make switching harder. 1d) Shielding 1e) Grabbing, throwing Question 2: is it better to teach rolling or Not? Should noobs train on 20XX with the roll-forces-sleep option, so they won't develop the habit of excessive rolling? Question 3: Should noobs train with hitbox display? I'd lean towards yes.... Question 4: Should shielding be avoided at this level, to prevent over-reliance on shielding, rolling, and shield-grabbing?

2a) Aerial mechanics. Short hopping, fast-falling, air-dodging. 2b) Basic recovery/ledge mechanics. Using double-jump and up-B, ledge rolls, ledge getup attacks, etc. Teach them to avoid tournament-winner, perhaps? Also, I think a good exercise is to practice getting as far away from the stage as you can while still making it back, t9 learn the limits of your character's recovery 2c) Early/high aerial attacks (ie no need for L-cancelling yet) 2d) concepts of DI. I don't know how best to train/reinforce this, but I do think it should be introduced early in the learning process. 2e) Simple platform movement. Dropping through platforms, running off platforms, jumping up to platforms Question 1: Is there an easy way to train DI other than getting repeatedly trashed by better players? Question 2: At what point should c-stick mechanics be introduced? Should players learn to do smashes and aerials without it first, or should they be c-sticking right from the start?

3a) Low aerials, L-cancelling. Short hop aerials, late aerials, aerials dropping from a platform, etc. 3b) Basic wavelanding. Wavelanding on the way down, wavelanding while jumping up through a platform 3c) Intermediate ledge options. Ledge drops (and subsequent double jumps), ledge guarding, etc 3d) Dash-dancing at varying lengths Question 1: To me, this is the first level where it's actually worthwhile to spend significant time playing actual matches against other people; this sound right to you guys? Question 2: what are some good ways of teaching the mental game? Mixups, mindgames, etc?

4a) Wavedashing. 4b) Shffling 4c) Advanced ledge options. ledgedashing, various stalling techniques. Question: Where do character specific options play in? Should new players start with a character like Mario or Marth who's mostly fundamentals and then move onto characters with more complex/specific options, or should they pick a high-tier main from the start and focus on that character from the get-go?

Anyway, these are just some preliminary thoughts on the matter; I welcome your input.