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  • Tales From The Poolside

    So I'm currently training to be a swimming instructor. PArt of that requires me to do some work experience with a pool. There is NO guarantee that I will be kept on at the end of the training. I am currently training in two classes, known here as Level 4 and Level 3 (they all have cute little sea creature names that I won't mention here) and I'm also meant to be training in Level 1 classes. Here's a collection of tidbits from the past few weeks:

    He's not THAT scary!

    One of my male "coworkers" takes Level 3 classes among others. He is the ONLY male I've seen who takes classes at that level. (most of the male instructors take the classes from Levels 5 and up) He's good with them though, which makes me wonder why he's not studying to be a primary school teacher (he's doing secondary). For some reason however, he seems to get the kids who don't want to go into his lesson. Case in point, last week we had a girl who refused to get into the water and chickened out behind her mother. We eventually got her into the pool but she refused to do any freestyle/backstroke. She did play games at the end though. (Turned out that part of the problem was that on Thursdays there are normally 2 Level 3 classes going on, but because of a lack of numbers in one of them, they decided to cut that class and combine the two. She'd had the other instructor (female))

    Ding ding ding!

    so the pool makes a little bit of a deal out of the kids who move up a level. Whenever they do, at the end of the lesson they go and see the deck supervisor, who rings a bell and announces "OK, <person> is going to move up to <class>" before starting in the new class next week. It's quite adorable actually.

    It's a Star Float, not a sit-down!

    So as part of my training, I'm having to take part of a class and then take a complete class. I've been taking the Level 4 kids. So far so good. At the end of this lesson (and in the Level 3 group) the kids do their float sequences, which is a star float on your stomach (star float is where you're just floating and you spread arms and legs out), star float on your back and a mushroom float (where you're in a tucked position and your back floats up on the surface) in that order. Some of the boys tend to sink. So when it comes to do a star float, their head is up above the water, their arms are above the water, but their chest and butt are sinking about halfway into the water

    you're HOW tall?!

    The age group of the kids I get is between 5-8. I wound up getting two kids the other night who either had a MASSIVE growth spurt, came into the program late, or have special needs of some description. I would say that the oldest was around 10, maybe 12 at the most, while the younger brother was around 8 or 9. We run a teenage swim program, so I have no idea why they're still in the after-school program. The younger brother made it about 20 minutes through the lesson before having to sit out (kid had hit his head earlier, after a quick cuddle from mum he was fine though), while his brother managed to make it through the entire lesson albeit enthusiastically. (he has this tendency to do two things: hold his breath while doing backstroke, and smacking the water when doing both strokes)

    And that's all I have for now.
    The best professors are mad scientists! -Zoom

    Now queen of USSR-Land...

  • #2
    I had some REALLY awkward moments last night:

    I was revising the freestyle with them and the backstroke and several of the kids kept going "and-and-and you need to do this, this and this". Awkard when they know more than you!
    The best professors are mad scientists! -Zoom

    Now queen of USSR-Land...

    Comment


    • #3
      Quoth fireheart View Post
      mushroom float (where you're in a tucked position and your back floats up on the surface

      we called that the "jellyfish float"
      Honestly.... the image of that in my head made me go "AWESOME!"..... and then I remembered I am terribly strange.-Red dazes

      Comment


      • #4
        Quoth BlaqueKatt View Post
        we called that the "jellyfish float"
        I was taught that the jellyfish float was where you were in a pike position.

        The mushroom float involves you hugging your knees.

        ETA: I had a really "awwww" moment today. One of the kids I had was a bit difficult to work with, but she improved at the end of the lesson.

        When I jumped out the water for a toilet break, I ran into her, she goes to me "Thank you for my swimming lesson." without any prompting from her parents.

        Last edited by fireheart; 06-09-2012, 12:13 PM.
        The best professors are mad scientists! -Zoom

        Now queen of USSR-Land...

        Comment


        • #5
          Good News!

          So today was my last day with the "Level 4" kids as I was meant to be assessed for that particular class.

          I passed with flying colours and from what I'm gathering, I've been getting really positive feedback from the parents.

          I should explain at this point, that at Level 4, when the kids can do certain skills, they will go off with another instructor or the really awesome deck supervisor and do some deep-water work with them (basically getting them used to swimming longer laps and the water being a lot deeper) in preparation for the next level. So it's kind of like Level 4a of sorts. It also allows the deck supervisor to assess them at the same time.

          So here's some stories from the last few crops of kidlets:

          -Two of the girls in one of my class had really similar sounding names. Out of a class of 4, they were the only two girls who didn't go up to the deep end. I kept mixing their names up

          -One of the kids had just transitioned from a Level 3 to a Level 4. I had sat in on that Level 3 class when he moved up, so when he came up to Level 4, he remembered me and got right into it. He also seemed to enjoy the antics of his classmates (the two very lanky boys in my previous post) He's VERY shy though and absolutely tiny compared to his classmates, but he managed to keep up very well. I was impressed.



          -I've already mentioned this in a separate thread, but at the end of the lesson we give the kids high fives. Doesn't matter what age group, if you're in the learn to swim program, you get a high-five at the end. Because there's two of us, they get a high five from me and their normal instructor. One of the girls in my class the other day went to high five the normal instructor and smacked me on the boob instead. (and I don't mean a brush of the boob, she actually went to high five and her hand landed flat on my boob)

          -Thursday afternoon is going to be VERY interesting...I'm starting my Level 1 unit, which means I go through the cycle all over again of "observe the class, take part of the class, take the whole class". On top of that, the kids are all aged 4-5. This is going to be interesting, especially when there's ANOTHER class right next door to the Level 1 class. (the lanes in the pool are divided at the 10m mark, so one half is 10m, the other half is 15m, because the Level 1 and 2 classes are 5m each, they "share" a lane)

          -I don't know whether to go or at this: Level 1 in the program is basically the starting point after the Infant and the Kindy levels and the minimum age for that group is 4 (usually the kids are around 4-5 years old in that class). One of the kids in one of the Level 1 classes turned out to be 9 years old . And I have her for my lessons on Tuesdays (this was mentioned by my very awesome instructor in charge today while I was helping the kids) It was actually quite strange seeing her wander down to the deep end with her classmates, who were at least a head shorter than her! (the level 1 class is more focused on getting the kids used to swimming without water wings, doing floats on their front and back, kicking on their stomach and back with and without a kickboard, putting their face into the water and submerging. The kids do free "dives" at the end of the lesson in the deeper part of the pool and IIRC, this and Level 2 are the only classes that do that activity)

          (and any kid who is new to the swim school is assessed BEFORE they start taking lessons there, so they aren't just shoved straight into Level 1, they start at whatever level they can demonstrate skills in (i.e. so if the kid can do 5m backstroke, 5m freestyle, they are placed in Level 3, if they can do 10m freestyle, 10m backstroke, they're placed into Level 4 and so on))
          Last edited by fireheart; 06-12-2012, 02:01 PM.
          The best professors are mad scientists! -Zoom

          Now queen of USSR-Land...

          Comment


          • #6
            He's not THAT scary!
            Kids that age sometimes have very irrational fears. I once was scared of a shoe salesman because he looked kinda like "Baker" from CHIPS.

            Baker! (no not Estrada, the other guy )


            Ding ding ding!
            OMG how cute!

            And the geek in me is thinking DING! Level up!

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            • #7
              Quoth PepperElf View Post
              OMG how cute!

              And the geek in me is thinking DING! Level up!
              It is cute. It does tend to stop the lesson briefly, but that makes it all the more awesome. Everyone usually claps and/or cheers for the person that's moving up, even if they haven't been teaching them or know them. (it's even cuter when one of the Level 1 or 2 kids moves up)

              I forgot to mention one other thing as well that is incredibly awesome:

              Usually before the kids rock up, the instructors will get into the pool for a bit of a chit-chat and to "warm" themselves up, so that they look prepared. During this time, the deck supervisor will also pop around and let the staff know if there's anything they need to be aware of (i.e. if they have no kids for one 30-minute period because they're sick/absent/whatever, or if they have a double to make up for a missed lesson). During this time, all of the deck supervisors have been checking up on me and making sure that I'm coping with the load OK (they've done this with all the trainees). I really do appreciate that. The manager is REALLY approachable as well.
              The best professors are mad scientists! -Zoom

              Now queen of USSR-Land...

              Comment


              • #8
                So I checked my results today. 99.9% pass, with one exception: I wasn't correcting their kicks when needed. I did everything else that was required of me though.

                Today I also got the "sampler". In short, I didn't wind up observing just one class, I observed THREE different levels, all within 2 hours. I had the ENTIRE gamut from Levels 1-3. Verrry interesting.

                Quick background: at the swim school, the kids get two kinds of certificates: Milestones, which are when they've achieved certain skills within that class, and Progression Certificates, which means that they move up a class.

                Here's some highlights:

                -Three of the kids in the Level 1 class have behavioural issues, one of which has been properly diagnosed, the other two are suspected. I also suspect that one of the larger children who hasn't been confirmed is also delayed in some aspect. (not physically, he's fine with that) It made for a VERY interesting lesson. Although I suspect that the two kids who haven't been confirmed seem to set the confirmed kid off, as he behaves perfectly fine when he's separated from them.

                -Of the two kids in the Level 2 class, one of them was SHIVERING by the end of the lesson, poor kid was so cold. We let them swim back to their "lane" area instead of walking along the edge. (Levels 1 and 2 do "jumps" at the deep end of the pool, after that level, it's no longer safe for them to be doing that activity)

                -I mentioned the boob thing to the instructor I was with today. Apparently in the Level 1 class, when you have less confident 4-year-olds, they tend to grab ANYTHING within reach (usually you hold them on your hip) and most of the time, for the female instructors, it tends to be the boob

                -One new kid got a little treat today: he got not 1, but TWO instructors for his very first Level 1 class. He was on his own for the lesson, but by the end of the 30 minutes, he received a Milestone certificate for putting his face in the water. I used the time to observe how a new swimmer starts in the Level 1 class. (and the instructor decided to use me as a model and squirted me with the pool toy )

                -We have these really weird toys for the kids to practice dropping into the water and picking up (meant to help them practice submerging). They're like dive sticks, but they have a seals head on the top and when you lift them out the water, they "wee" all over you.

                -The only level I am not looking forward to "learning" is the Level 2 class and for a good reason: it's way too repetitive. The other classes do have the kids repeating skills, but this is having them repeat the same two skills over and over for at least 25 minutes: that's torpedo and freestyle arms. (they don't learn backstroke arms until Level 3)

                -We had a bit of a role reversal today, when I'd first started my training, there was also another trainee who was starting and she'd got the Level 1 kids, hence me doing Level 4 first. Today it was the opposite: she had Level 4, I had Level 1. (if they keep me on, I plan on learning the whole gamut from Levels 1-5)

                -I also suggested something today to the instructor while I was observing/assisting the Level 3 class. Basically at that level, the kids are "segmented" into two groups: those who can do freestyle with 1 arm and those who can do freestyle with 2 arms (i.e. if they do it with one arm, they don't do their left arm, they only do their right arm and breathe). I noticed today that it's hard sometimes to remember who does 1 arm, who does 2 arms and the kids don't always remember. So I came up with the idea of using wristbands. Now I just need to buy some elastic and make them up
                The best professors are mad scientists! -Zoom

                Now queen of USSR-Land...

                Comment


                • #9
                  Quoth fireheart View Post

                  -We have these really weird toys for the kids to practice dropping into the water and picking up (meant to help them practice submerging). They're like dive sticks, but they have a seals head on the top and when you lift them out the water, they "wee" all over you.
                  Got a link? They sound hysterical!

                  I literally have been swimming longer thani have been walking - I got tossed into Lake Ontario at about 6 months old [mom tossed me in to my Dad so they could teach me to paddle around. When you spend your vacations on a sailboat and on a lakeshore kids need to be able to swim. I got sent to my grandparents every summer age 2 through 8 with my Mom, brother and our nanny. Best summers ever!]
                  EVE Online: 99% of the time you sit around waiting for something to happen, but that 1% of action is what hooks people like crack, you don't get interviewed by the BBC for a WoW raid.

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                  • #10
                    Quoth AccountingDrone View Post
                    Got a link? They sound hysterical!
                    Check the "Things I Am Not Allowed To Do At Work" thread. They are just called "dive sticks", but for some reason, the hole in them is placed right smack-dab in the "crotch" region. Hence why they look like they're "weeing"



                    Otherwise google "Zoggs swimming products".

                    We do start swimming programs at the swim school from the age of six months-most swim schools seem to do that nowadays (although one or two run them from four months). They're all parent/child classes. They stay in that class until they are 2 1/2 and then move up to "Toddler" which is still a decent-sized class, but does not involve mum or dad. After that, they start the proper swim program.

                    The babies look adorable in their little swimsuits.
                    The best professors are mad scientists! -Zoom

                    Now queen of USSR-Land...

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Quoth fireheart View Post
                      Check the "Things I Am Not Allowed To Do At Work" thread. They are just called "dive sticks", but for some reason, the hole in them is placed right smack-dab in the "crotch" region. Hence why they look like they're "weeing"



                      Otherwise google "Zoggs swimming products".
                      .
                      Cute =) They have some nice bathing suits. What we had back in the 60s sucked. The stupid cap I had to wear in the swimming pool had those horrible floopy plastic flowers all over it.
                      EVE Online: 99% of the time you sit around waiting for something to happen, but that 1% of action is what hooks people like crack, you don't get interviewed by the BBC for a WoW raid.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Quoth AccountingDrone View Post
                        Cute =) They have some nice bathing suits. What we had back in the 60s sucked. The stupid cap I had to wear in the swimming pool had those horrible floopy plastic flowers all over it.
                        Very few kids at my swimming centre wear swimming caps. The ones that do either have ear issues and the cap helps keep the band in place or they're serious swimmers and wanting to move through to squads quickly.

                        But yeah, those caps look horrid.
                        The best professors are mad scientists! -Zoom

                        Now queen of USSR-Land...

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Aaand some highlights from the last couple of days:

                          -I have now set a record for the unpaid trainee who has sat in on the most Levels at one time. Every time we sit or start to learn a new class, we have to fill out a sheet as a record. I now have four sheets: one each for Level 4 (now finished), Level 1, Level 3 and Level 2. All filled out by different instructors

                          -The deck supervisor warned me in advance about one of the kids that the Level 2 instructor had (I was sitting in on his class due to a mix-up which was my fault). He was on his own. It was a good thing, because the kid was an absolute handful. For starters, he would not listen to the instructor. He would not sit still. He was coaxed into doing what's required for the lesson, but only one lap at a time. He would splash both me and the instructor. The only way we could get him to do anything was to have him do his one lap, then on the way back, he was allowed to go for dive sticks and let them "wee" all over the instructors head.

                          I should add at this point that the kid was around 5-6 years old and living with a foster family. Clearly the kid has behavioural issues, or even I suspect, a hearing impairment (Indigenous kids-which he is one-tend to have a higher rate of hearing issues in my neck of the woods at least)

                          -Towards the end of the lesson for Levels 1 and 2, we have the kids do jumps as part of their water safety. They do a seated freefall and a jump. Now I just have to practice my catching skills and get ready to catch them once they've jumped.

                          -We were confronted with a slight issue the other day when the Level 1 instructor and trainee instructor had left. A parent walks up with his kid "Is this the Level 1 class?"Uh-oh, it's a Level 2 class and the instructor's gone...so I'm having to hop out of the pool and bolt over to the deck supervisor to explain what the heck is going on. Turned out that the kid was late and the instructor had left early assuming that there was nobody else. So one of the instructors who was taking the Level 3 class, along with HER trainee, took him for the Level 1 class. Poor kid was so nervous about getting his face wet, he had to be bribed with an icecream!

                          -More of a general gripe than anything, but there are a few kids who wear rash vests while training. This is generally over the top of their swimwear (if they're girls) or in addition to their swimwear (boys). The problem with the rash vests is that they DO drag the kids down while they're doing laps. It makes it very hard to accurately assess if they have the right stamina to move up a level.

                          -Towards the end of the lesson for the kids in Levels 3-5 (at least), we tend to get a bit goofy with the kids. One of the instructors who takes the Level 5 class tends to give piggybacks to the kids.

                          -Last week and tonight, I wound up having the whole gamut of classes. Although my CURRENT training is meant to be Level 1, the instructor on Thursdays takes Levels 1-3 all within the space of two hours. I get a little sampler (although I've been warned that the Level 3 class is one of the hardest to train in)
                          The best professors are mad scientists! -Zoom

                          Now queen of USSR-Land...

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