Review the glide, glide with kick, and kick with side breathing before you introduce the arm stroke (See Related eHows section). The child should have a firm grip on these skills before you begin to teach the arm movements.
2
Demonstrate the crawl stroke - also called freestyle - for the child (see Related eHow "How to Swim the Freestyle Stroke").
3
Explain to the child that he or she already knows most of the skills for this stroke. Demonstrate, slowly and carefully, just the movement of the arms - stand in the shallow end of the pool, rotating your arms in pretend crawl stroke. Show such fundamentals as forming "cups" with your hands and breathing under your arm.
4
Have the child stand in shallow water and guide his or her arms through the motions of the stroke. Then have the child do it alone. Make corrections as needed.
5
Support the child with a hand beneath his or her belly as the child floats face down and practices the stroke. Move the child through the water slowly, so he or she feels a sense of motion.
6
Stand a few feet away from the wall. Have the child to push off the wall, glide, kick and stroke all the way to where you are standing. Start close enough so that he or she won't have to worry about breathing.
7
Increase the distance gradually and continue to make corrections in the child's stroke.
Tips & Warnings
Be patient and supportive.
Advance slowly and always review the previous lessons before adding a new one.
Breathing is one of the trickiest skills to master in this stroke.
Once a child can basically swim the stroke, have the child do it as much as possible. The exercise and practice both will help his or her performance on the next lesson.
Never leave a child unattended near a swimming pool.
Swimming a faster freestyle requires discipline and dedication to learning and practicing swimming skills, including stroke technique, kicking and putting the two...
