South Lanarkshire Leisure and Culture

Entry Criteria

Physical

• 3 to 4 years of age
• Able to be in water

Psychological

• To cope with a pool hall environment
• Be part of a class
• Take part without a carer or 1-1 help being required (carer help may be gradually phased out as child becomes less dependent)

Aim

To become water confident and develop core aquatic skills (without adult help but with buoyancy aids as required)

Objectives

• Introduce complete non-swimmers to the aquatic environment and establish an understanding of safety in and around water
• Develop and progress water confidence
• Establish an understanding of basic core aquatic skills
• Encourage independent movement
• Develop skills through enjoyment, fun and self-discovery

Content Areas (Core aquatic skill area in bold)

• Entries & exits – introduce a variety of entries and exits
  a. Steps entry and exit
  b. Sit and roll entry
  c. Jump entry
  d. Climb out exit
• Orientation – move through water in a variety of ways
  a. Walk, run and jump in shallow water, including changing direction
  b. Rotation around the longitudinal axis (360 degrees)
  c. Regain standing from a floating position front and back
• Submerging & aquatic breathing – develop breathing control through both mouth and nose
  a. Blow ripples or egg flip along surface
  b. Submerge face completely
  c. Bob – consecutive bobs showing complete head submersion and bubbles
  d. Collect objects from the bottom of the pool/steps
• Floatation – introduce floating in a range of positions to develop body awareness
  a. A variety of floating position e.g. star float, mushroom float, pencil float, arms by side
  b. Front and back floats
• Streamlining – develop streamlining positions and introduce push and glide which is fundamental for travelling efficiently through the water
  a. Vertical standing in streamlined position for 5 seconds
  b. Vertical jumping while holding streamlined position
  c. Introduce push and glide in streamlined position front and back
• Propulsion – introduce the basics of kicking/pulling/swimming, covering exercises on front and back
  a. Variety of kicks on front and back
  b. Variety of pulling on front and back
  c. Swim with or without buoyancy aids on front and back for 5 metres

Exit Criteria - Pre-school (3–4)

• Enter and exit the pool safely without help
• Display aquatic breathing with full submersion (blow bubbles through mouth and nose)
• Fully submerge body
• Demonstrate floatation on front and back with or without a buoyancy aid
• Demonstrate streamlining on front and back with or without a buoyancy aid
• Travel 5 metres on front or back with or without a buoyancy aid
• Jump in without assistance
• Demonstrate three different movements across the pool

Swim Officers

If you want more information on our swimming courses or you would like to book a place, please contact the Swim Officer at the facility you wish to use.​​​​​​​