Great Tips For Providing An Exciting And Fun Swimming Lesson Plan

According to the CDC, an average of 10 people die from drowning every single day. And according to the same source, 2 of them are children aged 14 or under. Swimming lessons are a crucial part of preventing these accidental deaths.

Of course, even strong swimmers can drown. But it goes without saying that it’s far less likely versus people who are unable to swim at all. Any difficulty with swimming is a recipe for trouble whenever a body of water’s around.

Swimming lessons teach children a life-saving skill. And a fun swimming lesson puts a smile on their face in the process!

Are you in charge of teaching swimming lessons? Are you looking for ways to make them more enjoyable for everybody?

We can help!

Read on for 7 top tips on running fun and exciting swimming lessons.

1. Keep Things Short

First thing’s first: Don’t let the lessons go on too long!

Now, commercial instructors won’t have a problem here, as you’ll be running set classes to a specific schedule.

But for anybody delivering swim lessons in a less formal environment, know that timing is important. It’s vital that you adjust the length of a lesson in relation to the kids’ ages.

As you might expect, lessons for younger kids should be shorter while lessons for older kids can run a bit longer. As a rule of thumb, a quarter of an hour is a good starting point for real youngsters.

Children aged between 3 and 5 could probably cope with up to half an hour. Kids older than that will benefit from lessons of 45 minutes and up.

2. Keep the Pool Warm

There’s nothing fun about learning to swim in freezing cold water.

Do your best to ensure the water’s warm enough to be comfortable. Anything from 82 degrees and up should do the trick. Any colder and you’re sure to hear about it from the kids!

Water that’s too cold can be uncomfortable and distracting – neither of which is conducive to learning. As a result, water that isn’t warm enough might actually hinder their attempts.

You want kids to associate those lessons with positive feelings. All that cold water will do the opposite! If they’re uncomfortable, they might be reluctant to get back to the pool in coming lessons.

3. Include Games

All kids love to play.

And when they’ve got to a reasonable skill level in the pool, there’s nothing better than letting them play games in the water!

Let’s face it, any education can get a bit serious sometimes. All those swimming regimes might be awesome for their technique, stamina, and general progress in the pool. But, as they say, “all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.”

Breaking up your lessons with more light-hearted activities is a good plan.

Even better, swimming lesson games don’t have to come at a detriment to their education. Think of activities like water polo. This is a vigorous sport that demands agility, co-ordination, stamina, and teamwork.

A child that can handle water polo can feel confident in their swimming abilities!

4. Get Out of the Pool

This tip might seem a bit backward.

After all, you want to help these children get better at swimming, so getting them back on land might seem counterintuitive to your efforts.

However, there’s nothing wrong with mixing things up a bit. Kids that are getting better at swimming might start getting bored of the same old laps and exercises.

Running drills on land can make a refreshing change that boosts their endurance. You can also work on flexibility, strength training, and activities that build general fitness. They’ll enjoy the change and improve in the pool as well.

5. Leverage Swimming Equipment and Aids

Think about life outside swimming lessons.

What’s the first thing the kids do when they’re free of structure?

They splash around, grab the floats and fins, and play rough and tumbles around the pool. You could make yourself the coolest swim instructor ever by building these very activities into the lessons.

This also works as an incentive for good behavior. You know the kids love it, which makes the threat of losing games and aid-related pool activities a big deal. If they ever start to misbehave, then you can tell them the games are off the table.

6. Set Individual Goals

This tip might be tricky with big groups of children.

Likewise, the idea of goal-setting might not sound like a lot of fun, but you’ll be surprised.

Try your hardest to work with each child on a specific goal or two. As you’re well aware, kids learn at different rates in all aspects of life, including swimming. Group goals are great, but they can be tough on anybody learning slower than the rest.

Individual goals solve that problem. Setting them with each child will do two things:

• Show them you care
• Motivate them to achieve more

There’s nothing like a goal to direct your attention and focus your learning. Having an instructor that cares enough to help is even better.

7. Don’t Use the Same Old Drills

Children thrive on novelty. Change, diversity, and originality will keep them enthused.

On the other hand, the same old stuff, week in and week out will soon see them lose interest. Swimming will become dull and mundane.

So mix things up! Always look for new drills to run and different activities to do. The element of surprise involved will ensure they stay engaged and look forward to future lessons.

Time to Run a Fun Swimming Lesson

Aside from being great exercise, being a strong swimmer could one day save their life. Run a fun swimming lesson and the kids will learn to love the learning process too!

Hopefully, this post will help you do exactly that.

Want to read more articles like this one? Check out the selection of swimming articles on our blog now!