Goals:
- Learn student names
- Introduce self (instructor)
- Give clear expectations: “We’re doing supported front glides. This is what it looks like.”
- Earn trust: demo activities first and offer modified alternatives if you sense fear.
- Focus on FUN and routines.
- Introduce framework: activity, activity, challenge.
- Smile, laugh, play!
Bubbles and Bobs
Blow bubbles for five seconds.
Bob the same number of times as you are old up to 10 times.
Walk around the benches.
When the swimmer crosses from one bench to the next, kiss the water.
Challenge –
Lift one foot above water and all 5 toes. Hold for 3 seconds.
BONUS: Keep one foot and 5 toes above the water without touching anything.
SUPER BONUS: Keep 10 toes above the water for 3 seconds.
Walk around the benches with bubbles.
Separate the benches a little.
When the swimmer crosses from one bench to the next, kiss the water.
Introduce supported front glides with instructor
Begin close, and support swimmer so that they do not go underwater.
Encourage chin in water.
Encourage kissing water.
Pick up Rings
Give swimmer 6 rings and have them get them with:
– Foot
– Hand
– Shoulder underwater
– Lips in the water.
– With a foot, but both hands above water.
Reach for the Wall
Position a bench so that it faces the wall about 1 body length away.
Swimmers take turns with support leaning forward and grabbing the edge with both hands.
Encourage swimmers to kiss the water as they reach and fall forward.
Put two hands on the wall, and two feet and monkey walk sideways. At the end of the bench, reach back and return to the rotation.
Supported Front Glide with a reach
Stand *just* outside of the swimmer’s reach.
Have them follow the front glide script. Ask them to reach for your “shoulders.”
Once they reach you, walk backwards providing support.
Bake a Cake
One of the best dynamic games filled with opportunities to go underwater.
Variants include, “make a pizza,” “make a taco,” “bake muffins (with rings)”
-Get a hoola hoop, or a circular object and make that your “cake”
-Have swimmers circle around the hoola hoop and hold the sides.
-Take turns asking each swimmer what they would like in their cake. Exp: “Susie, what would you like in your cake?” “CHOCOLATE!” “Ok, lets put some chocolate in the cake!”
Take turns splashing water into the hoola hoop and repeat “Put some chocolate into our cake!”
-After each swimmer has put their own ingredient into the cake, have each swimmer grab the edge of the hoola hoop and push it down to their feet to “put the cake in the oven.” Encourage each swimmer to put their nose, mouth or face in the water while doing so.
-Do another short activity while the cake “bakes.”
-Have a swimmer, or swimmers check the cake by putting their face, lips, or nose in the water. Ask, “Is the cake done? Is it ready to eat?”
-Have swimmers reach down to the sunken hoola hoop to their shoulders, or noses if they can, and slowly, heavily, lift the “cake” to the surface.
-Have swimmers blow bubbles on the cake (inside the hoola hoop) to cool it off so you can eat it.
-Eat the cake by either smashing faces into the water inside the cake (voluntarily!), or getting a bucket and dumping onto their faces or heads. Make sure everyone participates! either dump water on their shoulders, on the back of their head, or on their face. If scooping water, make sure they do something to be a part of the fantasy.
-Be enthusiastic, and exclaim how delicious it is!
Flutter kick on wall or bench.
Hold on to the bench and do SUPER SPLASHES!
Kick as hard as you can! See if you can splash enough to fill a bucket.
Supported Back Float / Glide
Have the swimmer rest on the parent’s shoulder. Lean into their neck and arm.
If ADVANCED hold the back of the head.
Jumps in water with support
“Do you want to go underwater?”
While waiting for turn, do jumps on the bench or in shallow water. Must jump high enough so belly button goes over the surface.
Lowering hula hoop
Hold a hula hoop vertically with 1/2 above the surface.
Swimmers walk through.
Each time they go through the hoop lower it slightly until they need to put their face in to go through.
Supported Back Float / Glide
Have the swimmer rest on the parent’s shoulder. Lean into their neck and arm.
If ADVANCED hold the back of the head.
Challenge: Back float with 2 finger support
Instructor can only support swimmer with 2 fingers; under neck. Swimmer must keep belly button over the water for 3 seconds without any other assistance.
Treasure Hunt
Pile as many floating toys as you can on a kickboard.
Sail it out to sea together. Have a storm strike. Waves, splashing. Spread the toys around the pool.
Do supported front glides to collect toys and return to the kick board (boat).
Tornado Twister!
Create a “tornado” where all of your treasure ship toys fall off and are strewn across your area.
Swimmers must collect the toys by blowing bubbles to pick them up and return to the treasure ship.
Monkey walk to leave
Start on the bench aimed at the wall.
Front glide to the wall with lips kissing the water.
With both hands and feet monkey walk to the exit.