Hi: I'm new to this forum, but it looks like a great place to get information.
I have an 8 year old girl who was in a VERY relaxed semi-competitive program for a couple of years with volunteer lifeguard coaches. This season she joined a competitive club - we thought this would be a good place for her to get her technique improved while she was still young.
Unfortunately, this club's junior coach has never swum competitively, has only coached one year, and has yet to finish her level 1 certification. None of those 3 is a killer, but together they scare me! Also, the coach seems very reluctant to discuss anything with parents, so we're feeling a little uneasy.
I'm not a pushy crazy parent, and I don't want to interfere with the coach. I do want to help my daughter's technique, however, especially her breastroke. She's clearly got some potential there, and I want to ensure things progress. She's swimming 3 times a week, 90mins each tme.
Any suggestions? Should I get a book (any recommended) and try to work with her myself a little (I'm an ex - very ex - competitive breastroker). Should I video her and seek out a coach who can comment? Should I just butt out, hope and pray? I can't pull her and go elsewhere (and I'm not sure I would, as she likes it there, and that's very important).
She also has a very rigid straightleg freestyle kick that causes her legs to tire very easily - combined with her high head position this complicates things for her freestyle. I want to work on that too, so any suggestions?
Any comments appreciated.
Parents
Former Member
Lacking credentials is one thing... never having swum competitively, AND never having coached, AND no credentials is a different thing entirely.
Anyway, it seems most of you want to make an assumption that only a pushy parent could take the position that I'm taking, even though you have no evidence of my being pushy. If I was pushy, I would already have stepped in, spoken to the coach about my concerns, and started coaching her myself. I'm deathly afraid of that, as I see those kinds of parents everywhere and they horrify me.
Of course she's old enough to be conflicted. When she joined I was concerned that it might be too much (combined with her other spsorts) and so I said she could join and then decide after 2-4 weeks whether she was ok with it. So now, in asking her how she feels, she indicates that she can't make up her mind. She comes to me often to say she doesn't know whether she wants to stay. She says she likes swimming with her friend, but she doesn't like the fact that no-one is helping her with her freestyle and butterfly anymore, and she is scared of embarrassing herself in those strokes. I try to reassure her, but she keeps saying she doesn't know whether she wants to keep doing it, but doesn't say one way or another whether she wants to quit. When I tell her it's ok to quit, she says no. My daughter is one of those kids that loves to be taught, and (yes, even at 8) has great focus. (also, she's a real goodie two shoes, teacher's pet, etc) So, she doesn't like to feel that she's "just swimming", as she puts it. She's asked the coach for specific help and told "don't worry, you have many years to learn to swim". She's used to her other sports where she always gets instruction. Maybe she's been spoiled by a succession of great coaches who had no problem combining fun with teaching. Of course all of them have actually played the sports they were teaching and were keen to pass on that joy.
Michael Heather's comment is to the point. I'm quite prepared to devote the time, but I don't want to rub the coach the wrong way, and worried whether I would be overstepping my mark. (and worried about looking pushy, although I gather from the postings that I'm already guilty on that point) Also, if I did do it, I would be interested in any tips (direction, referrals to books, articles, etc) that would allow me to provide some basic coaching that would not conflict with the coach. There are some basics to swimming that I'm sure everyone agrees on, but I'm sure there are some other things I might pass on that might conflict with whatever the coach is learning in her "learn to coach class". Besides, where my daughter needs the most help, I'm the most vulnerable. (I was a pathetic butterfly swimmer - but she quite likes it) I feel like I'm only good for breastroke and distance freestyle.
So, if I do gingerly help, any suggestions on sources for things I can pass on that will be very neutral and common to all coaching techniques?
Lacking credentials is one thing... never having swum competitively, AND never having coached, AND no credentials is a different thing entirely.
Anyway, it seems most of you want to make an assumption that only a pushy parent could take the position that I'm taking, even though you have no evidence of my being pushy. If I was pushy, I would already have stepped in, spoken to the coach about my concerns, and started coaching her myself. I'm deathly afraid of that, as I see those kinds of parents everywhere and they horrify me.
Of course she's old enough to be conflicted. When she joined I was concerned that it might be too much (combined with her other spsorts) and so I said she could join and then decide after 2-4 weeks whether she was ok with it. So now, in asking her how she feels, she indicates that she can't make up her mind. She comes to me often to say she doesn't know whether she wants to stay. She says she likes swimming with her friend, but she doesn't like the fact that no-one is helping her with her freestyle and butterfly anymore, and she is scared of embarrassing herself in those strokes. I try to reassure her, but she keeps saying she doesn't know whether she wants to keep doing it, but doesn't say one way or another whether she wants to quit. When I tell her it's ok to quit, she says no. My daughter is one of those kids that loves to be taught, and (yes, even at 8) has great focus. (also, she's a real goodie two shoes, teacher's pet, etc) So, she doesn't like to feel that she's "just swimming", as she puts it. She's asked the coach for specific help and told "don't worry, you have many years to learn to swim". She's used to her other sports where she always gets instruction. Maybe she's been spoiled by a succession of great coaches who had no problem combining fun with teaching. Of course all of them have actually played the sports they were teaching and were keen to pass on that joy.
Michael Heather's comment is to the point. I'm quite prepared to devote the time, but I don't want to rub the coach the wrong way, and worried whether I would be overstepping my mark. (and worried about looking pushy, although I gather from the postings that I'm already guilty on that point) Also, if I did do it, I would be interested in any tips (direction, referrals to books, articles, etc) that would allow me to provide some basic coaching that would not conflict with the coach. There are some basics to swimming that I'm sure everyone agrees on, but I'm sure there are some other things I might pass on that might conflict with whatever the coach is learning in her "learn to coach class". Besides, where my daughter needs the most help, I'm the most vulnerable. (I was a pathetic butterfly swimmer - but she quite likes it) I feel like I'm only good for breastroke and distance freestyle.
So, if I do gingerly help, any suggestions on sources for things I can pass on that will be very neutral and common to all coaching techniques?
