How to train a beginner swimmer

Beginner Swim Schedule

Be sure to set up your equipment before class. Gather your supplies — kickboards, pool noodles, buoys, goggles, etc. — and have them waiting where you’ll hold the class.

Start Slowly

In your very first session, introduce swimmers to the water. Freeman suggests that when teaching someone how to swim, encouraging the swimmer to get comfortable putting their face in the water as well as floating on both the stomach and back are great things to work on initially.

“Start where the athlete is,” Freeman says. “Some beginner swimmers need to start by learning to float and some will dive in and attempt freestyle right away.”

As they become more comfortable putting their face in the water, have the swimmer blow bubbles with their face submerged, then turn their head to the side. This introduces rudimentary rotary breathing, a necessary skill for breathing while swimming.

In time, an athlete can also begin to use a kickboard to incorporate a kicking motion into their swim stroke. A kickboard can also be a useful tool in understanding how to float when the beginner swimmer is learning how to stay afloat on both their stomach and back.

One Thing at a Time

Freeman knows it can be tempting as a coach to give lots of instruction when teaching someone to swim But in her own learning of how to teach someone how to swim, she knows this can backfire.

“Only ask the swimmer to work on one thing at a time,” Freeman says. “The athlete may have multiple important corrections to improve their swim stroke, but they can only focus on one thing at a time while swimming — and only a handful of corrections during a single swim lesson.”

The skill of how to teach someone how to swim means always building to the final goal of proper swim technique (and not teaching bad habits), Freeman says. For example, if a swimmer is practicing kicking with a kickboard, they should have their face in the water to practice exhaling into the water and turning their head to the side to breathe.

Combine Skills and Celebrate

Once the beginner swimmer has a handle on basic skills, it is time to start putting them all together. Instruct them to hold the kickboard while kicking and doing rotary breathing. Then, teach submersion and breath holding by asking the students to retrieve objects from the bottom of the shallow end. Eventually, students can build on these skills to become confident freestyle swimmers.

Freeman suggests incorporating swim fins and a swim snorkel when the beginner swimmer is first endeavoring to combine their newfound skills.

According to Freeman, swim fins can prevent a swimmer’s legs from sinking and teach the swimmer to use the power of their kick for forward propulsion. A swim snorkel can take the stress of mastering rotary breathing away temporarily and help the swimmer to focus on their body position instead.

It is key to remember that the process of learning how to teach someone to swim can take many months — even a year or more. During this time, Freeman reminds instructors to celebrate the small wins.

“Reinforce what the athlete is doing well each swim session,” Freeman says. “There will be a seemingly endless list of corrections the swimmer could make, and it’s important to balance the swim technique fixes with positive reinforcement.”

5 Swimming Drills for Beginners

The skills required for swimming are acquired gradually and people learn these skills at different speeds. Swimming drills for all swimmers can help them learn how to swim efficiently and confidently. Keep in mind that teaching someone how to swim may involve modifying these drills to suit the swimmer’s needs.

As new swimmers practice these pool drills, they’ll become more competent and will begin to perform it automatically, leading to successful swimming of various strokes.

1. Push and Glide

After someone has gained some initial water confidence, you can teach them the essential skill of pushing and gliding. This swimming drill introduces the skill that forms the basis of swimming starts and turns.

Initially, you can teach them to start from standing and push off the pool floor with their feet and reach for the poolside. You can then teach them to push away from the side and glide to a partner who can catch them. As confidence improves, learners can progress to pushing, gliding and standing up on their own.

Teach people to do this drill with their arms outstretched and face in the water with the toes pointed. This introduces the streamlined body shape that forms the basis of swimming starts and turns and the correct body position for swimming front crawl.

2. Kicking and Breathing Drill

This drill is excellent for teaching beginners how to swim. Have the swimmer kick while holding a kickboard with straight, outstretched arms and with their face in the water. Then, encourage the swimmer to kick with a slight bend at the knees and with their heels at the water’s surface to promote a neutral body position.

The swimmer should exhale under water and turn their head to the side to breathe, as this reinforces good breathing technique. The swimmer should practice this drill for at least a couple lengths of the pool until they feel confident in their ability to maintain a neutral body position while turning to breathe.

This drill can progress into the swimmer holding the kickboard with one arm and doing a stroke with the other, until that arm catches up to the other arm at the kickboard, and then the second arm does a stroke, continuing for a whole lap.

3. Black Line Drill

Most pools have a black line (it may be a different color) at the bottom of each pool lane. These lines help swimmers know that they are swimming straight and when they are about to reach the pool wall. In this drill, swimmers will use the black line to work on their hand entry into the water.

The swimmer should aim to swim in the center of the lane and keep their arms just outside the black line, especially as their hand enters the water. This is harder than it sounds in most cases, but helps the beginner swimmer learn to keep their hand entry directly in line with their shoulder and to maintain a straight trajectory of their arm from entry to stroke exit.

4. Glove Drill

The glove drill also teaches proper hand entry into the water and builds upon the black line and kicking and breathing drills. Correct hand entry into the water can prevent a host of shoulder and back issues later on and is a critical skill for a beginner swimmer to learn.

In this drill, Freeman instructs the swimmer to envision their hand entry into the water as if their hand is sliding into a glove that is “a few inches under the water, pointed slightly downward, and at the end of the swimmer’s reach.”

This visualization promotes proper hand entry as well as shoulder rotation upon the hand submerging into the water.

5. The Spork Drill

It is common for beginner swimmers to either hold their fingers and hands together too tightly, or conversely, not put enough tension into their fingers and wrists to effectively pull themselves through the water.

The spork drill asks swimmers to pretend their hands are sporks, the utensil that has a curved “palm” and pointy “fingers” and may be used in camping gear or to eat dishes that involve both broth and noodles.

In the spork drill, the swimmer should position their fingers as if their hands are sporks, with their palms neutral or slightly curved, and about a quarter-inch separation between their fingers. This hand position is optimal for pulling the swimmer through the water with each stroke without cramping their hand or losing water between their fingers.

SCHEDULE

Class 1: Introduction to Water Safety and Comfort

• Objective: Build comfort and confidence in the water.
• Lesson:
  • Discuss water safety rules.
  • Practice getting in and out of the pool safely.
  • Get comfortable with the water (splashing, submerging face, etc.).
  • Practice breath control (blowing bubbles in the water).
  • Introduce floating on the back with assistance.

Class 2: Floating and Basic Breath Control

• Objective: Establish basic floating and breath control skills.
• Lesson:
  • Review breath control from the previous class.
  • Practice floating on the back and front with assistance.
  • Introduce submerging the head and holding breath.
  • Begin kicking exercises while holding the pool edge.

Class 3: Kicking and Basic Arm Movements

• Objective: Develop basic kicking and arm movement coordination.
• Lesson:
  • Practice kicking with a kickboard or while holding the pool edge.
  • Introduce arm movements for front crawl (freestyle) while standing in shallow water.
  • Practice floating with minimal assistance.

Class 4: Gliding and Combining Arm and Leg Movements

• Objective: Combine arm and leg movements for basic propulsion.
• Lesson:
  • Practice gliding from the pool wall with legs extended.
  • Combine kicking with arm movements in shallow water.
  • Begin practicing side breathing techniques.
  • Introduce the concept of streamlining the body in the water.

Class 5: Basic Freestyle (Front Crawl) Introduction

• Objective: Begin learning the freestyle stroke.
• Lesson:
  • Practice full stroke coordination for freestyle in shallow water.
  • Focus on proper breathing techniques, turning the head to the side.
  • Practice swimming short distances (5-10 meters) with assistance if needed.

Class 6: Freestyle Stroke Development

• Objective: Improve freestyle technique and stamina.
• Lesson:
  • Review and refine the freestyle stroke.
  • Practice longer distances (10-15 meters) with focus on maintaining proper form.
  • Introduce simple drills to improve arm technique and breathing rhythm.

Class 7: Introduction to Backstroke

• Objective: Learn the basics of backstroke.
• Lesson:
  • Introduce and practice the backstroke arm movements.
  • Combine backstroke arms with flutter kicking.
  • Practice swimming short distances (5-10 meters) using backstroke.

Class 8: Review and Swim Practice

• Objective: Consolidate skills and build confidence.
• Lesson:
  • Review all strokes learned (freestyle, backstroke).
  • Practice swimming longer distances with focus on endurance and technique.
  • Provide feedback and tips for improvement.
  • Encourage independent practice and set goals for the future.

This schedule is flexible, so adjust based on the swimmer’s progress and comfort level.