So, last month, I applied for and got a job with my swim club. Six evenings a week, I will be coaching small groups of kids who are at the pre-competitive level, kids who have moved on from our swim school and are on the cusp of moving into the competitive teams.
I don't make the workouts for weekday practices, but on weekends I get to improvise. So far, I'm enjoying the training, but I'm wondering what coaches do to stop their voices from getting a bit hoarse. What do you guys think? What do you find is most important about coaching little kids, from ages 5-8 or so?
Also, as an aside, I will be tapering come the beginning of July for my end-of-season meet. It's hard to believe the taper is now just a month away. Do you guys think I should take the second week of my taper off from working and find substitutes for that week? I just ask because I've always read here on the forums here and there in threads about tapers that you want to stay off your feet.
Thanks in advance for all your advice!
I don't make the workouts for weekday practices, but on weekends I get to improvise. So far, I'm enjoying the training, but I'm wondering what coaches do to stop their voices from getting a bit hoarse. What do you guys think? What do you find is most important about coaching little kids, from ages 5-8 or so?
Congratulations! This year, for the first time, I bought a $35 megaphone from Amazon for precisely this reason. I normally coach masters during the year but add summer league for a couple months in Spring/Summer. That's a lot of yelling for my old voice. I figured I'd look a bit dorky, but I wasn't going to lose my voice this year.
It was totally worth the money. The kids actually shut up and look at you when you are using voice amplification! We ended up buying two more for our summer league coaches. I got mine off Amazon.
IMO, having fun, learning the fundamentals of each stroke and learning to practice things correctly are the priorities for that age.
(As far as taper goes, I can't say I've ever tapered enough to be off the deck, so I don't know what you should do!)
I don't make the workouts for weekday practices, but on weekends I get to improvise. So far, I'm enjoying the training, but I'm wondering what coaches do to stop their voices from getting a bit hoarse. What do you guys think? What do you find is most important about coaching little kids, from ages 5-8 or so?
Congratulations! This year, for the first time, I bought a $35 megaphone from Amazon for precisely this reason. I normally coach masters during the year but add summer league for a couple months in Spring/Summer. That's a lot of yelling for my old voice. I figured I'd look a bit dorky, but I wasn't going to lose my voice this year.
It was totally worth the money. The kids actually shut up and look at you when you are using voice amplification! We ended up buying two more for our summer league coaches. I got mine off Amazon.
IMO, having fun, learning the fundamentals of each stroke and learning to practice things correctly are the priorities for that age.
(As far as taper goes, I can't say I've ever tapered enough to be off the deck, so I don't know what you should do!)
