Pool Games for Better Swimming Technique

Pool games are a great way to develop swimming skills and prepare children for the swim team experience because they are fun and offer competition. Games in the water are one of the most effective ways to work on specific areas, including endurance, stroke development and stronger breathing. Here are a few of our favorite pool games for children.

Simon Says is the best way to target and develop individual strokes. Large pools are better, so participants have room to really practice each stroke. “Simon says, do the back stroke.” “Simon says, swim freestyle.” It’s simple to practice as many strokes as you need, and to particularly focus on ones that require extra work.

Red Light, Green Light is another playground favorite. When brought into the water, you can use this game to improve endurance by requiring the distance to the “traffic light” to be a full lap. Allow ample time during green lights, so participants can become stronger in the water. Have the final green light be a lengthy sprint to really develop endurance.

Diving for Treasures is a way to focus on breathing and becoming stronger while underwater. It’s as simple as scattering some “treasures” in the deep end and allowing participants to dive in to retrieve them. Allowing one dive to gather as many treasures as possible encourages longer periods underwater and develops breath-holding ability.

Relay Races accustom participants to the rhythms and procedures of swim team competitions, while they develop the swimming skills necessary to perform better. Specify different strokes for each lap to work on technical skills.

As a side benefit, pool games also teach children to listen to instructions and carefully follow specific rules, which are important skills to have on a swim team. Most of all, just have fun and your kids will develop good swim techniques faster and with more enthusiasm. Texas Swim Academy partners with many local swim teams in the local area. Please see our Community Sponsorships page to learn more.

For a more structured environment to build essential swimming skills and advance them, learn more about the Texas Swim Academy Stroke Development and Conditioning Swim programs. The Stroke Development program is broken down by six different levels to accommodate individual ages and skill levels. Students will build basic swimming skills and each level is a building block or bridge to the next skill. Since every child learns at a different pace, there is no time limit for completion for each level.

Our Conditioning Swim program is a more intermediate level to advanced level class. This 45-minute class is focused on helping students build endurance and improve stroke techniques to improve individual stroke times.

We strive to give our students the resources they need to be successful and enjoy a lifetime of swimming. Please feel free to visit our programs page to learn more about our swim programs.