5-8 Year Old ZAPPERS

2012 SPRING PRACTICE SCHEDULE

Swimmers new to the sport start by developing strokes. Swimmers are taught all four competitive strokes and compete at local duel, tri and intrasquad meets as well as at designated smaller age group competitions. Swimmers ages 8 and under begin in one of our developmental groups so they learn good habits in stroke mechanics, team membership, practice and meet etiquette, early.

FUNdamentals

Just as the name implies, the primary focus of FUNdamentals is to help swimmers learn and refine the first two basic strokes, Freestyle and Backstroke, in a fun environment. Major emphasis is put on balance and alignment in the water, starting with kicking and breathing, and then adding arm strokes. Swimmers will also improve their endurance and increase lung capacity by swimming regularly in this group. Additionally, swimmers will learn the basics in the language of swimming, how to wade their way through intro level swim meets and how to be part of the team. Once swimmers are able to swim a legal 25 Freestyle and Backstroke under :30 and 50 Freestyle under :55, they are ready to move into the next group. This group is offered twice per week for 45 minutes. Swimmers wanting more conditioning and time in the water may register for two sessions. We also encourage our 8/U swimmers to participate in other sports to help develop overall athleticism and coordination.  

Training group options for FUNdamentals Spring 2012 are: 

1) Monday/Friday 4-4:45pm ($80/mo.*) OR

2) Monday/Wednesday 6-6:45pm ($80/mo.*) OR

3) Tuesday/Thursday 5:15-6pm ($80/mo.*)

NOTE: These groups are NOT interchangeable. Swimmers belong to one group and train in their group. Makeups and refunds are not given for missed practices.

*Monthly dues are separate from meet entry fees and the initial ZAP registration fee ($220/swimmer; includes the mandatory annual USA Swimming and AAU registration fees). 

Fundamental Parents: This is also an introductory level for parents. You too will learn how our sport works, swim jargon, and how to be a supportive ZAPPER BACKER. We know you will have many questions, and we encourage you to ask as you go because things make much more sense when you are IN them versus before you've reached a certain point. There are no dumb questions are we are here to help you; The more you ask, the more you get involved, the more you will learn! Don't be shy, you are part of the team! And please, don't worry about making mistakes... they happen, we are all human, and besides, how else will you learn?!

Drills & Skills

The second level in our progression is Drills & Skills. This group is a continuation of Freestyle and Backstroke stroke development but the primary emphasis is Breaststroke and Butterfly stroke development. Additionally, swimmers will continue learning and using basics in the language of swimming, navigating their way through intro level swim meets and learning that they are an important part of our team. Once swimmers are able to swim a legal 50 Breaststroke and Butterfly in competition, they are ready for IM Ready. This group is offered 2 or 3x week for 45 minutes and we encourage swimmers to attend all practices offered in their training group. We also encourage our 8/U swimmers to participate in other sports to help develop overall athleticism and coordination.

Training group options for Drills & Skills Spring 2012 are:

1) Monday/Wednesday/Friday 5-5:45pm ($120/mo.*)

2) Tuesday/Thursday 4:30-5:15pm ($80/mo.*)

3) Monday - Friday UNLIMITED ($150.mo.)

NOTE: These groups are NOT interchangeable. Swimmers belong to one group and train in their group. Makeups and refunds are not given for missed practices.

*Monthly dues are separate from meet entry fees and the initial ZAP registration fee ($220/swimmer; includes the mandatory annual USA Swimming and AAU registration fees). 

Drills & Skills Parents: We understand that at this level, parents are still "new" to this, and often times you may feel more new than your swimmer does! THIS IS NORMAL. Quite fankly, you will continue learning new things as your swimmer progresses, even when they are in high school and going into college! We will continue holding your hand per se, and showing you the ropes. Please continue asking questions because this also helps us know what we need to make clearer. Trust us... things do begin to make more sense... it just takes time and experience to learn all the "ins and outs", 'dos and don'ts" of the sport.

IM Ready

Once the swimmer demonstrates proficiency of the four individual strokes in competition, they are ready to take the good habits they learned in Fundamentals and Drills & Skills, and develop their Individual Medley (aka as the "IM") and move into the "IM" based groups. These groups are more of a "workout" setting rather than a "stroke class" environment and IM READY is the first of the IM-based groups. In addition to building the IM, work ethic and beginning goal-setting skills are also introduced. They are linked to the concept of Kaizen (continual improvement) which becomes something learned and strived for. Additionally, swimmers will learn and use the language of swimming, how to handle 'RW' and 'BRW' swim meets and take a more active role in the team. This group has four (4) practices offered per week and swimmers are encouraged to attend as many as they can. We also encourage our 8/U swimmers to participate in other sports to help develop overall athleticism and coordination. There are no refunds, prorating or makeups for missed practices.

The 2011 Fall/Winter practice schedule for IM READY is:

Monday/Tuesday/Wednesday/Friday 5:30-6:40pm

DUES: $125/mo.*

*Monthly dues are separate from meet entry fees and the initial ZAP registration fee ($220/swimmer; includes the mandatory annual USA Swimming and AAU registration fees). 

IM Ready Parents: Chances are pretty good that at this point you've started to get a little clearer as to what a 25 is, how many hands one must touch with in Breaskstroke and Butterfly, what a "pickle" is, and much more! We hope you will continue to learn and grow with us, and know that we cannot do this without you! Parent help is absolutely essential to making the swim meets run smoothly and our team to be as effiecient, welcoming and productive as possible. Although we do not mandate a quota of a certain number or volunteer hours per family, we do need everyone to pitch in. If there are things you WANT to do to help out, please let us know! Thank you in advance for your service and support! We will continue to educate you and help you along as we believe open communication is the key to the success for your swimmer and that of the entire team!

IM Strong

The IM STRONG group is for swimmers who have swum a 100 and 200 IM legally in a meet and shown they are ready for and can handle a more intensive, faster paced workout. This group has five (5) practices offered per week and 8/U swimmers are encouraged to attend 4 of them. We also encourage our 8/U swimmers to participate in other sports to help develop overall athleticism and coordination. There are no refunds, prorating or makeups for missed practices.

The 2011 Fall/Winter practice schedule for IM STRONG is:

 M-F 5:30-7pm

DUES: $135/mo.*

*Monthly dues are separate from meet entry fees and the initial ZAP registration fee ($220/swimmer; includes the mandatory annual USA Swimming and AAU registration fees). 

IM Strong Parents: Chances are pretty good that at this point you're pretty clear on how ZAP and SoCal swimming operate at a basic level. We hope you will continue to support our great team, learn and grow with us, and know that we cannot do this without you! Parent help is absolutely essential to making the swim meets run smoothly and now that you are somewhat of a veteran, we need your help in helping out new families. We do not mandate a quota of a certain number or volunteer hours per family, we do need everyone to pitch in. If you haven't already, please let us know how you want to get more involved! We will continue to educate you and help you along as we believe open communication is the key to the success for your swimmer and that of the entire team! Thank you in advance for your service and support!

PRACTICE EQUIPMENT: Swimmers need to bring their own equipment each day, including:

•mesh bag

•water bottle

•2 caps

•2 goggles

•kickboard (tombstone shape)

•fins

•pull bouy (IM Strong only)

RECOMMENDED PRACTICE ATTENDANCE

Swimmers ages 8 and under should attend 2-4 practices per week, depending on what they have done in the previous year. We encourage our younger swimmers to participate in other sports, in addition to swimming, since the better the athlete they are, the better the swimmer they wil be. Consistent weekly attendance is more important than the exact number of days to their growth and development in swimming.

"Do not confuse motion and progress; A rocking horse keeps moving but doesn't make any progress."

~A. Montapert

"Taking Swimming to a Higher Level."