LEARN TO SWIM
A Life Skill
At Devizes we start by teaching the basics of each stroke and ensuring that the swimmer gains confidence in the water. This is always in the shallow end of the pool with swimming aids if necessary. Once the basics have been grasped the swimmer will move on to swimming widths and learning the techniques of each stroke (Back, Breast, Front Crawl and even Fly).
We hold fun galas from time to time, to introduce the idea of competition and swimming for time, but there is no pressure for anyone to take part - it must be FUN. We even hold our own version of the club championships when we assess when a swimmer my be ready to move up to a squad session.
Most of our current squad started their swimming experience in our own Teaching section and have progressed through the club.
We swim on Tuesday evening starting at 6:00pm, and each swimmer will be allocated a session time according to their ability. The more confident swimmers will swim later in the session. A typical session for a learner will last about 30 minutes. We follow the ASA teaching guidelines for swimming, which tests a swimmers competence in various areas of swimming before allowing them to move on to the next level. Which stage a swimmer is at will determine the time of the swim.