Coaching for the swim team.. how to teach breast sttroke?!!??!?

Question

I am at a lose for what to do now. I am a teenager and have been swimming since i was 6 years old. But for the past two years i have coached swim team. I have the 7-8 year olds. They usually dont know how to do butterfly or breaststroke. So it is my job to teach them.

I have taught breast stroke before, andt he kids have understood. But for some reason, this years kids havent got a clue. Right now, i am jsut wokring on showing them the individual parts. I will put them all together later. I have showed them the kick, had them practice, and even moved their legs how you arree supposed to, but they havent gotten the feel for it.

Does anyone know how else i can show these kids the kick. The stroke i will get evtually.. and i know how to gte the to put it together, but the kick is the most difficult. Anyone know any tricks? Thanks ahead of time for your help.

Answer 1

get them out of the water and use some stretch cords and a table. If you have something like a Vasa swim trainer bench, thats perfect.   Break the stroke down for them out of the water.  

If thats not an option, get in the water yourself with them and show them, then let them try.  Kicking on their back is another good thing to do. They can see if their knees are breaking the surface, so thats a start. you can help them by holding their feet and showing them how they should be moving.

Teaching young kids is the hardest thing you can do.  It takes the patience of a saint, it really does.

If all else fails, repetition.  Good luck!

Answer 2

So I gather this is a summer team with inexperienced young kids that don't have the basics.  So here is what I have done.  Have them walk on deck around the pool "like a duck".  Make sure they turn their feet and knees out.  Put each kid on a picnic table bench and manipulate the legs.  Up, out together.  On the out make sure they pull their toes up, if not lots will do a scissor kick.  Get them in the pool on a kickboard on their backs,  tell them to bring the feet up behind them and try to have the heels touch the butt.  This will help prevent them from popping the knees apart and tucking under, like another responder said about not breaking the surface with the knees same result. For the arms, the downfall for kids is that they pull all the way down.  What has worked for years (this is how I learned 30 yrs ago)  Is to say imagine a toilet bowl.  Think of the bowl.  Trace your hands around the toilet bowl, ape arms, squash a bug, glide 1,2,3.  And we just repeated around the toilet bowl, ape arms, squash a bug, glide 1,2,3.  Drills are great, I feel though that these kids are too beginner, and the season is only a few weeks long and you need a legal stroke now.

Answer 3

You should go to the library and check out "The Swim Coaching Bible" by d**k Hannula. Its a great book for teaching swimming.

Also, I would just teach them drills. Drills are the best way to achieve perfect strokes.

Heres a page I found:

http://www.swimmingpracticeplans.com/bre...

Good Luck!

Answer 4

Give them that floating board and have them do frog-kick for  a couple of lengths and then give them a pull-buoy and have them pull for a couple of lengths. That's what our swim coach does. He says you have to make a heart shape with your arms.

Answer 5

well I know that is a hard stroke i didnt get it at first either and neither did my litle stster but the coaches just kept saying pretend like your a frog so i hope that helps! :)