Stroke Copycat
Swimmers copy the teacher or a leader's stroke on poolside – a quick way to practise switching arm and leg actions.
- Stages
- Stage 3
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Skills
- Front Crawl, Backstroke, Coordination
- Equipment
- None
- Age
- 6–12 years
- Group size
- 2–14 swimmers
- Time
- About 4 minutes
- In a lesson
- Introduction / Warm-up, Game / Consolidation, Recap / Safe Exit
- Shared by
- SwimShare Resource
Safety notes
- Keep the area in standing depth so swimmers can stand to watch.
What it develops
- Show early actions for all four strokes
How to run it
- The teacher demonstrates a stroke action on poolside (e.g. backstroke arms).
- Swimmers copy it in the water for a short distance.
- The leader changes stroke; swimmers switch as soon as they see it.
- Let swimmers take turns being the leader.
Teaching cues
- Watch, then copy.
- Change quickly.
- Keep kicking.
Make it easier
- Copy standing in the water first.
- Only two strokes.
Make it harder
- Leader changes stroke every few seconds.
- Add rotations between strokes.
Common faults
- Swimmers stop to watch.
- Half-hearted copying.
Corrections
- Leader demonstrates slowly and clearly.
- Give each swimmer one technique tip.
Assistant / L1 role
- Be the poolside leader while the teacher gives feedback in the water.