New ideas to keep kids safe and smiling in pool
SWIMMING AUSTRALIAN Dolphins Bronte Campbell and Josh Beaver have helped launch a new program in Cairns that aims to put the fun back into learning to swim and keep swimmers loving the sport for longer.
Swimming Australia and Belgravia Leisure launched their new partnership with a learn to swim program premised on fun, activity-based learning.
Together they have developed a new curriculum with industry experts that aligns to plans and guidelines prepared by the Federal Government, the World Health Organisation, the Australian Water Safety Council, and Austswim.
This includes infant, preschool and primary school levels with Optus Junior Dolphins 1 and 2 forming the final two levels of this fun and engaging swimming journey.
The cornerstone is gamesbased learning to develop safer, stronger swimmers. The swim journey is powered by the innovative technology.
It is designed to improve communication and interaction between swim school, parent, and swimmer, enhancing the swimmer’s experience while increasing retention.
Key technology features include swimmer notifications on achieving skills and milestones, digital awards, video messaging from the Australian Dolphin Swim team and Optus Splash live chat.
Campbell and Beaver took junior Cairns swimmers
THE BIG CHANGE IS THE WAY STUDENTS LEARN TO SWIM, WHICH IS VIA ACTIVITY-BASED LEARNING INSTEAD OF TRADITIONAL COMMAND-BASED LEARNING.
through their paces in a fun Optus Junior Dolphins session on Saturday.
Swimming Australia general manager of participation and sport development, Paul Malcolm, said the goal was to put fun back into learning to swim.
“The big change is the way students learn to swim, which is via activity-based learning, instead of traditional command-based learning. It is a contemporary approach to teaching the next generation of kids to swim, a crucial life skill,” he said.