Listening, Learning and Swimmer Evaluations

Most swimmers start their career learning to swim then demonstrating their skills for a coach hoping to be the newest member of the swim team. Throughout the season I watch many swimmers and their parents begin the journey with an evaluation, usually with Coach Laurel.

I can count on 2 things at each evaluation: kids and nervous and parents are nervous. That’s understandable, it’s a test, of course. “Did I make it?” is the common kid question and, “He/She didn’t really show their best” is the most common parent response. Both of these responses seem rooted in the uncertainty over what is being tested and what the tester is looking for.

Here’s an inside look at how we evaluate swimmers and place them in a squad.

The first thing I am evaluating is the Listening Skills of the swimmer. Do they make eye contact, how do they answer simple questions about themselves, what can they tell me about their swimming, do they follow simple instructions, do they understand what they will be doing in a few minutes. Usually I am watching and listening as Coach Laurel asks the questions.

Listening is the first key to learning. It is very difficult to hear in a pool with water splashing, coaches giving instruction, and little things like water rushing in the gutters. There are also many distractions like water inlet jets, swim toys (kick boards we can use like swords, for example), and simply being in the water with more kids. The classroom of the pool is quite a bit different than the classroom at school.

During the evaluation and throughout a swimmer’s career I am constantly evaluating listening as the pre-cursor to introducing new and more complex skills. All of the research that I have seen on teaching skills and all of my practical experience tells me that skill development is sequential. Each skill builds on the foundation of previously developed skills and skipping a step or skill is not a shortcut, it is a path to lower skill level.

Here’s what I look for at the moment of an initial evaluation and throughout a swimmers development and career:

Simple listening and body language: eye contact, facial expressions, ability to talk to a scary new adult.

Listening in a group. A competitive team is a large scale learning environment with group learning being the dominant teaching method. All sports rely on group teaching and individual correction with almost all individual correction still being done in the group environment.

Listening in the water. See the comments above about the number and complexity of distractions in the pool. As practices get more complicated and children gain social skills the practice classroom becomes even more distracting.

Applying what is heard. Sports teach personal responsibility in a very simple and obvious way: an athlete has to learn that only they can move their arms and legs, turn their head to breathe, push their legs into the starting block or make themselves breathe hard. No matter how hard we—parents or coaches—try from the sidelines, sports always come down to the athlete’s actions.

Swimming in the way that was described and instructed. There is a difference between trying and doing what was heard. The former is a critical component for performance while the latter is the goal of a coach’s teaching.

Wow . . . that was complicated! What about the actual swimming?

Right, almost got carried away . . . Here’s what Coach Laurel (or any other coach) is looking for as a swimmer moves down the pool . . .

First is Fundamental Body Position. How is the child positioned in the water? How well do they float? Floating is both necessary for swimming (and water safety) and a great indicator of how comfortable the child is in the water. An uncomfortable child will have difficulty performing new skills as they will be fighting against their own actions.

Second are Kicking Skills and Head Position. After floating these are the two necessary skill components of body position that allow learning more advanced skills. The head and the feet anchor and stabilize the body, align the spine and provide foundation strength that allows the arms to move properly and breathing to happen more effortlessly. A relaxed swimmer with solid anchor points will progress more rapidly.

Third is a General Athleticism demonstrated by smoothness of movement. This smoothness is the comfort and relaxation discussed above. But it is a bit more; swimming is moving water with hands and feet, NOT moving hands and feet through the water. An athlete reacts and interacts with the field of play and water does not always cooperate with precise movement. Seeing how an athlete responds with their hands and feet to the water tells a coach a lot.

OK, that’s a lot of info . . . but what about the actual squad placement? Got it . . . here’s a view of the difference between Mini-Ducks and Mighty Ducks and placement.

The Mini Ducks is an advanced swim lesson for children who are comfortable (floating) in the water but have not mastered arm strokes and breathing in freestyle or backstroke arms and kicking. In addition these swimmers need to be water safe and able to use a kickboard.

The goal of these lessons is to build on learning and listening skills, increase comfort in the water, let children explore movement, and put them on a path to joining the swim team. Teaching Fundamental Body Position, back stroke arms and kick, and rhythmic freestyle side breathing are the target goals of the Mini Ducks.

The Mighty Ducks is the introductory squad of the swim team. The Fundamental Body Position skills and stroke skills of freestyle (floating, kicking and side breathing) and backstroke (floating, arms out of the water, kicking on the surface) are the required skills of the Mighty Ducks. Swimmers in the Mighty Ducks may be familiar with, as in “I know what it looks like”—but generally have not learned these strokes.

The goal of the Mighty Ducks is to prepare children for the first real Swim Team squad, the Yellow Squad. Learning and demonstrating all four strokes satisfactorily, diving, freestyle and backstroke turns, understanding simple rules (2-hand touch, stay on your back, wait for the beep, e.g.), and a level of physical ability that allows learning for a longer and more intensive time period are required skills for the Yellow Squad.

Well that was a lot, much more than I set out to write. I hope it is helpful in guiding your swimmer to a long and healthy swimming career.

The Yellow, Green and Bronze Squads . . . stay tuned for more on these squads soon.

 

---

Copyright, 2010, Michael Lawrence. All rights reserved. No republication permitted without the express prior consent of the owner.

Most swimmers start their career learning to swim then demonstrating their skills for a coach hoping to be the newest member of the swim team. Throughout the season I watch many swimmers and their parents begin the journey with an evaluation, usually with Coach Laurel.

I can count on 2 things at each evaluation: kids and nervous and parents are nervous. That’s understandable, it’s a test. “Did I make it?” is the common kid question and, “He/She didn’t really show their best” is the most common parent response. Both of these responses seem rooted in the uncertainty over what is being tested and what the tester is looking for.

Here’s an inside look at how we evaluate swimmers and place them in a squad.

The first thing I am evaluating is the Listening Skills of the swimmer. Do they make eye contact, how do they answer simple questions about themselves, what can they tell me about their swimming, do they follow simple instructions, do they understand what they will be doing in a few minutes. Usually I am watching and listening as Coach Laurel asks the questions.

Listening is the first key to learning. It is very difficult to hear in a pool with water splashing, coaches giving instruction, and little things like water rushing in the gutters. There are also many distractions like water inlet jets, swim toys (kick boards we can use like swords, for example), and simply being in the water with more kids. The classroom of the pool is quite a bit different than the classroom at school.

During the evaluation and throughout a swimmer’s career I am constantly evaluating their listening as the pre-cursor to introducing new and more complex skills. All of the research that I have seen on teaching skills and all of my practical experience tells me that skill development is sequential. Each skill builds on the foundation of previously developed skills and skipping a step or skill is not a shortcut, it is a path to lesser skill level.

Here’s what I look for at the moment of an initial evaluation and throughout a swimmers development and career:

      Simple listening and body language: eye contact, facial expressions, ability to talk to a scary new adult.

      Listening in a group. A competitive team is a large scale learning environment with group learning being the dominant teaching method. All sports rely on group teaching and individual correction with almost all individual correction still being done in the group environment.

      Listening in the water. See the comments above about the number and complexity of distractions in the pool. As practices get more complicated and gain social skills and interactions the practice classroom becomes even more distracting.

      Applying what is heard. Sports teach personal responsibility in a very simple and obvious way: an athlete has to learn that only they can move their arms and legs, turn their head to breathe, push their legs into the starting block or make themselves breathe hard. No matter how hard we—parents or coaches—try from the sidelines, sports always come down to the athlete’s actions.

      Swimming in the way that was described and instructed. There is a difference between trying and doing what was heard. The former is ta critical component for performance while the latter is the goal of a coach’s teaching.

Wow . . . that was complicated! What about the actual swimming?

Right, almost got carried away . . . Here’s what Coach Laurel (or any other coach) is looking for as a swimmer moves down the pool . . .

      First is Fundamental Body Position. How is the child positioned in the water? How well do they float? Floating is both necessary for swimming (and water safety) and a great indicator of how comfortable the child is in the water. An uncomfortable child will have difficulty performing new skills as they are almost always fighting against their own actions.

      Second are Kicking Skills and Head Position. After floating these are the two necessary skill components of body position that allow learning more advanced skills. The head and the feet anchor and stabilize the body, align the spine and provide the foundation strength that allows the arms to move properly and breathing to happen more effortlessly. A relaxed swimmer with solid anchor points will progress more rapidly.

      Third is a General Athleticism demonstrated by smoothness of movement. This smoothness is the comfort and relaxation discussed above. But it is a bit more as swimming is moving water with hands and feet, NOT moving hands and feet through the water. An athlete reacts and interacts with the field of play and water does not always cooperate with precise movement. Seeing how a athletes responds with their hands and feet to the water tells a coach a lot.

OK, that’s a lot of info . . . but what about the actual squad placement? Got it . . . here’s a view of the difference between Mini-Ducks and Mighty Ducks and placement.

      The Mini Ducks is an advanced swim lesson for children who are comfortable (floating) in the water but have not mastered arm strokes and breathing in freestyle or backstroke arms and kicking. In addition these swimmers need to be water safe and able to use a kickboard.

The goal of these lessons is to build on learning and listening skills, increase comfort in the water, let children explore movement, and put them on a path to joining the swim team. Teaching Fundamental Body Position, back stroke arms and kick, and rhythmic freestyle side breathing are the target goals of the Mini Ducks.

      The Mighty Ducks is the introductory squad of the swim team. The Fundamental Body Position skills and stroke skills of freestyle (floating, kicking and side breathing) and backstroke (floating, arms out of the water, kicking on the surface) are the required skills of the Mighty Ducks. Swimmers in the Mighty Ducks may be familiar with, as in “I know what it looks like”—but generally have not learned these strokes.

The goal of the Mighty Ducks is to prepare children for the first real Swim Team squad, the Yellow Squad. Learning and demonstrating all four strokes satisfactorily, diving, freestyle and backstroke turns, understanding simple rules (2-hand touch, stay on your back, wait for the beep, e.g.), and a level of physical ability that allows learning for a longer and more intensive time period are required skills for the Yellow Squad.

Well that was a lot, much more than I set out to write. I hope it is helpful in guiding your swimmer to a long and healthy swimming career.

The Yellow, Green and Bronze Squads . . . stay tuned for more on these squads soon.

 

---

Copyright, 2010, Michael Lawrence. All rights reserved. No republication permitted without the express prior consent of the owner.