Help beginner swimmers understand, relax and progress with clearer teaching language

Teaching beginners is often as much about confidence and communication as it is about technique.

A swimmer may be nervous about putting their face in the water, unsure how to float, reluctant to let go of the wall or simply confused by the words being used.

Phrases for Teaching Beginners gives swimming teachers practical, poolside-ready cues and alternative ways to explain beginner swimming skills when the usual instruction is not working.

Want to see inside first?

Download a free sample and see how the Beginners Phrase Book works before you buy.

PREVIEW THE BEGINNERS PHRASE BOOK

Inside, you'll find different ways to teach:

✓ First water confidence
✓ Face wetting, bubbles and submersion
✓ Floating, balance and recovery
✓ Push and glide
✓ Deep-water confidence and control
✓ Underwater skills and object recovery
✓ Survival skills
✓ Common beginner teaching problems
✓ Quick-reference beginner cues

When one explanation doesn't connect, this book gives you another way in.

Say it differently. Help it click.

What’s inside?

Every teaching goal gives you a range of different ways to communicate the same skill.

You'll find:

✓ Direct cues for swimmers who need clear, simple instructions

✓ Gentle and reassuring phrases for swimmers who need confidence

✓ Playful and imaginative language that makes unfamiliar skills easier to picture

✓ Feel-based explanations to help swimmers connect with the water and their body position

✓ Rhythm and sequence cues to make actions easier to remember

✓ Alternative wording for swimmers who are nervous, rushing or not understanding

Each phrase is designed to be short, practical and easy to use during real swimming lessons.

Teaching goals included

First water confidence

• Entering the water
• Walking in the water
• Splashing and playing with water
• Holding the side and moving in place
• Jumping in
• Moving away from the side
• Returning to the side
• Changing direction in the water

Face wetting, bubbles and submersion

• Wetting the face
• Putting the mouth in the water
• Putting the nose in the water
• Blowing bubbles
• Submerging the face
• Full submersion
• Opening the eyes underwater
• Picking up an object from the pool floor
• Blowing bubbles while moving
• Swimming through water over the face

Floating, balance and recovery

• Front float
• Front float with support
• Back float
• Back float with support
• Star float
• Tuck float
• Mushroom float
• Regaining standing
• Rolling from front to back
• Rolling from back to front
• Recovering balance after floating
• Floating in a still shape
• Floating while travelling

Push and glide

• Streamline shape
• Push and glide on the front
• Push and glide on the back
• Push and glide with support
• Push and glide with kick
• Gliding further
• Gliding through a hoop
• Push and glide into standing
• Push and glide into a swim

Deep water skills

• Moving into deeper water
• Swimming out of depth
• Jumping into deep water
• Returning to the wall
• Treading water
• Treading water with support
• Sculling
• Head-first sculling
• Feet-first sculling
• Staying calm in deep water
• Changing direction in deep water
• Swimming from deep to shallow water
• Swimming from shallow to deep water

Dives, underwater skills and object recovery

• Feet-first surface dive
• Head-first surface dive
• Surface dive for an object
• Surface dive and return
• Underwater swimming
• Swimming through a submerged hoop
• Underwater body shape
• Retrieving sinkers
• Travelling underwater with control

Survival skills

• Entering unknown water safely
• Straddle jump
• Compact jump
• Pencil jump
• Floating to recover
• Turning onto the back to rest
• Lifesaving backstroke
• Sidestroke
• Swimming in clothing
• Removing clothing in the water
• Swimming to safety
• Conserving energy
• Staying calm when tired

When the first explanation does not work

• When they are scared
• When they are too stiff
• When they rush everything
• When they will not put the face in
• When they cannot blow bubbles
• When they cannot relax on the back
• When the legs sink
• When they overthink
• When they panic in deep water
• When nothing is clicking

Beginner Quick Phrase Finder

• Quick cues for confidence
• Quick cues for submersion
• Quick cues for floating
• Quick cues for gliding

When your usual words aren't working

Sometimes the swimmer is capable of the skill, but the wording you are using simply is not connecting.

Repeating the same instruction louder or more often rarely solves the problem.

A smaller task, calmer phrase, different image or simple sequence can make the same teaching point suddenly make sense.

Instead of repeatedly saying:

“Put your face in the water.”

you might try:

• “Just your lips first.”

• “Give the water a kiss.”

• “Make one tiny bubble.”

• “Dip and come straight back up.”

The teaching goal stays the same.

Only the route into it changes.

Practical phrases for common beginner problems

Use the book when swimmers:

• are nervous or scared

• will not put their face in the water

• struggle to blow bubbles

• find floating difficult

• tense up or become too stiff

• rush through skills

• overthink simple movements

• struggle with balance

• are anxious in deeper water

• need help returning to the wall

• need simpler wording or smaller progressions

• are simply not responding to your usual instruction

The Beginner Quick Phrase Finder also gives you fast alternatives for common situations when you need an idea quickly on poolside.

Perfect for

✓ Swimming teachers working with complete beginners
✓ Teachers working with nervous children or adults
✓ New teachers building their poolside teaching language
✓ Experienced teachers looking for fresh ways to explain familiar beginner skills
✓ Teachers working on confidence, floating, submersion and early independence
✓ Anyone who finds themselves repeating the same beginner cue without getting the result they want

Want to see inside first?

Download a free sample and see how the Beginners Phrase Book works before you buy.

PREVIEW THE BEGINNERS PHRASE BOOK

Your digital edition

Approximately 200 pages

✓ Instant PDF download
✓ Mobile, tablet and desktop compatible
✓ Easy to use for lesson planning or quick poolside reference
✓ Part of The Swimming Teacher’s Phrase Book Series

Use the phrases exactly as written, adapt them to your own teaching style, or use them as inspiration for developing your own personal phrase bank.

Say it differently. Help it click.