Games and Imagination In Practices

Written By: Eric Holden

Participant dropout and disengagement is something that is present in all youth sports and activities. Young athletes may be (and should be!) involved in multiple different sports, clubs, and activities as they figure out what their interests are. As they age and develop their own interests, individuals must choose which activities they continue with as the demand needed for each one increases.

Especially with our younger swimmers (10/U), keeping an element of imagination and games within the practice environment has led to changes in many different areas throughout our Age Group Program. We have improved weekend attendance, effort, focus, and have even decreased distracting behavior throughout our workouts due to the inclusion of imagination and games.

ATTENDANCE

Friday night practice typically has the lowest attendance. In the Fall of 2019 we began having “Hawaii Friday” every Friday evenings. Adding tropical shirts and reggae/island music to our practices has greatly improved the attendance of Fridays, sometimes by as much as 30%. Kick sets may become “Surf Sets” on these days, and a quick limbo contest for underwater work may pop up, but mostly it is just the environment that is different. Saturday mornings have turned into “Sprint Saturdays” for some groups too, where the expectation of getting off the blocks and racing has helped to increase attendance as well. This seemingly small change has made a big difference and is something that our swimmers look forward to each week.

EFFORT AND FOCUS

Adding a challenge, points objective, or creative “distraction” throughout the week is a great way for kids to challenge themselves to focus and achieve more. With our youngest swimmers, pretending to be sea creatures, mermaids, or scuba divers help us to dress up the skills of dolphin kicking, proper breathing, and general body movement in the water. Naming test sets or other set patterns that show up routinely allow swimmers to identify the set, recall their previous achievement, and try to be better on the current one. When you mention the “21 Club,” “Elite 18,” “Climb the Mountain,” “Kick Flips,” or “How Low Can You Go,” the swimmers will know what is coming and what is expected, and can rally together to get behind the objective of the practice. Keeping records of swimmer achievement and reminding them of how they did last time gives them something to strive to beat too. During drill/focus sets, assigning points for different skills throughout the swims helps kids know what the important things are and keep track of their progress. Swimmers can collect 1 point each for a kickout number, bottom arm breakout, and stroke count per length to make an otherwise mundane 10x50s drill become a game to get to 30 points.

BEHAVIOR MANAGEMENT

Using snorkels with a group of 10-year old’s and them NOT using them as a water toy, lightsaber, or trumpet is a rare feat. However, stopping for 10 seconds between rounds for a snorkel orchestra concert gives swimmers a controlled opportunity to be a little silly without distracting from directions or skill practice. Inviting swimmers to try to shoot water out of their snorkel and hit the flags helps practice the necessary skill of clearing your snorkel and keeps water from being aimed towards teammates instead. Similarly, turning a warm-down set of 50s into a game of “Simon Says” or “Telephone” requires swimmers to listen intently, communicate precisely, and also increase focus and intent. When turned into a game, swimmers have a job to do when on the wall, and it helps them stay engaged (something that my swimmers don’t always do effectively during warm down).

At the end of it all, our swimmers are kids, who enjoy being with their friends, having fun, competing, and doing things they love. By working with the swimmers to incorporate these desires into constructive and positive aspects of a practice, we can use games and swimmer imagination to reach new heights in the water and better connections between teammates. Happy swimmers are fast swimmers!

Eric is beginning his third season as the Head Age Group Coach with the Wilton YMCA Wahoos in Wilton CT. Eric directly works with the 9-12 year olds and oversees the developmental program. In addition, Eric is an assistant coach for the Wilton High School Warriors. Eric began his swimming career as an 8 year old and progressed through the local, high school, national, and NCAA Division 1 levels. Eric earned his undergraduate and masters degrees from the University of Virginia in Kinesiology/Health and Physical Education. His passion for the sport of swimming and his training as a physical education teacher led him straight to coaching in both Charlottesville VA and Connecticut at the summer league, high school, and club levels.