Here at Swimsound, we’re always looking forward to summer: swimming in the pool on holiday, taking a dip in the sea, family trips to the local baths – swimming is best in the summer!
Although it may feel like those memories are a million miles away, as we shiver and hide under our umbrellas through a miserable rainy February, there is no better time to start teaching your child the most life-saving skill. As our first term of 2025 comes to an end, our coaches have been reflecting on the year so far, and planning our next few months as a swim school. Summer at Swimsound means another fantastic gala, water safety week, as well as new adventures for our duckling classes and games for our older swimmers!
Having water confident young people is an essential as we approach these warmer months. 75% of drowning incidents among children occur in the summer, as we flock to beaches, lakes and pools all over the world. At Swimsound, we take a unique approach to swim teaching, to ensure that all of our swimmers are confident in the water: play! Our priority is of course to create a generation of strong confident swimmers, but the best swimmers are those who love the water. Our teaching ethos encourages discovery and fun in the pool, supporting children in their autonomy to grow and develop braver and more complex skills every week.
Our coaches follow the idea of ‘Deliberate Play’. This concept centres around goal-orientated, planned activities and games aimed at skill-development while allowing students to explore. This idea is implemented from our ducklings right through to our lane swimmers. Our duckling teachers plan a different adventure each week for their lessons, taking our youngest students to the jungle, to space, to the beach: the options are endless! To help overcome big steps in their swimming journey, such as putting their faces in or swimming independently, our coaches invent mermaids to look at under the water, stars to count on the ceiling, ice cream to scoop, dolphins to splash. All of these techniques encourage our ducklings to have fun in the water, and overcome their personal boundaries in a fun, non-pressuring environment. By beginning their swimming journey with this mindset, our swimmers have a desire to explore and grow independently.
We work hard to ensure this passion for practice continues with children through their swimming journey. We integrate play up to our most advanced lane swimmers through group games, relays, and friendly competition. But how exactly does play lead to successful skill acquisition? Allowing greater freedom in games allows children to use their creativity and imagination, equipping them with a variety of athletic abilities. Children are constantly on the move, and a sport that focuses on play allows kids to stay active in a way that feels natural ensures a healthy relationship with sport and exercise well into their adulthood. Swimming is fantastic for developing motor skills, cognitive abilities, and social skills. Group games such as water polo encourage children to work together, whilst also developing treading water, coordination, stamina, and strength skills.
Over the next few months in the run-up to summer, our coaches will be implementing ‘deliberate play’ into their lesson plans each week, preparing our swimmers for a safe, fun, and playful summer spent in the water! Sign up now to join in on the best swimming lessons in Liverpool.
