Instructor Tips on Teaching Special Needs Students to Swim

Create a great experience

Teaching swimmers with special needs can be challenging, but keep in mind that you are doing nothing but good by committing to teach that student. First off, you are using your experiences and expertise to teach a life skill to someone who may not enjoy many other activities that kids their age are participating in (school, soccer, music, etc.) If your swimmer seems to enjoy the water, this is YOUR chance to really give both him/her and their parents a great experience.

Benefit to the Swim Instructor

Teaching a student with special needs is just as beneficial to you as an instructor because you will learn to adapt your teaching style. An instructor who can adapt from lesson to lesson based on the student, is the best kind of instructor.

Why?

Because you will acquire more experience than you even realize! Your patients will be tested but the MOST important thing to remember is learn the student.

Learn the student

For example:

If this student will not listen, ask them what they want to do. They may tell you, “I want to jump in!”

In that case, use this as a motivator. ‘”If you can show me how you practice big kicks (or whatever you are trying to teach), then we can go jump in the water.”

Certain toys mapool toysy motivate the student. I had one student who loved his little Disney character toys. They may have been five dollar toys, but they helped him stay focused the entire lesson. I often scattered the toys around the outside of the pool and we would swim to the toys as motivation.

Watch for repetition

One sign of Autism is repetition. If you notice that the student goes under water 5 times in between drills, hold a certain color diving ring, adjust their goggles or something of the sort- don’t stop him. Does it take away from your lesson plan? Sure, maybe so, but I have found it much more productive to let the children do what they feel necessary so the lesson remains fun and contented. Don’t feel as if you need to have the same lesson plan every time with that student, but it may be comforting to the student to start with the same drill every time and end with the same drill/song every time.

As tempting as it is to just skip the exercises that the student doesn’t like, you as their instructor are responsible for them learning the vital techniques to swim.

If you start to notice that the ‘Jump, Turn, and Grab’ exercise brings nothing but tears, lesson after lesson, then burry that drill in the middle of two fun exercises that the student loves! It is essential that overall the student walks away from the lesson with positive feelings.’

Comprehension

There is a chance that you will not be able to sit the student on the step and explain and entire drill like you may normally do. You may need to explain things one step at a time and even repeat yourself if needed. If you feel like you are losing control of the lesson, STOP EXPLAINING! It’s not working and you’re wasting time. It may be time to just demonstrate. Gently take the student’s hands and manually show them how to ‘scoop the water’ or kick their feet.

Don’t give up

Don’t give up. It is very important to realize that things WILL get better. The student is nervous and scared and most importantly, doesn’t know you. It can be very overwhelming for them. As you spend more time together, the student will become trusting and therefore more willing to participate in the lesson you planned.

By: Stephanie N.
Swim Instructor in Colleyville, TX
Area Servicing: Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas
I have taught swimming lessons for almost 6 years to students of all ages and skill levels. It is something that I truly love to do! I first began teaching at the YMCA in Rockwall, Texas then advanced to working with the Youth Conditioning group as well as Angel Swim, which works with special needs children. I coached competitive swimmers (ages 8-17) at the Longview Swim Club for 2 years while in college. This is my second year working for Sunsational.