Free drill library · Diving

At-home diving drills for 7 to 10 year olds

This is a free sample week of at-home diving training for 7 to 10 year olds: 3 of the 7 plans SSTracker has for this group, each 12 to 13 minutes, with every step and minute. Nothing here is written for this page alone; it is what the app gives a family.

Everything here can be done in a room, garage or yard. Drills that need a team are left out; a parent can be the partner in a pair drill.

A free sample week of diving for 7 to 10 year olds

Session 1

Approach & Start at home 13 minutes

  1. Floor Hurdle Walk · 4 min
    Walk tall, knee up, land together.
  2. Standing Start Position · 5 min
    Still, tall, ready.
  3. Statue Start Game · 4 min
    Freeze tall and still.

Session 2

Takeoff at home 13 minutes

  1. Arm Swing to Toes · 4 min
    Arms up, rise up.
  2. Straight Reach Jumps · 5 min
    Up, not forward.
  3. Simon Says Reach Jumps · 4 min
    Straight up, soft landing.

Session 3

Line form: Pointed Toes and Tight Knees 12 minutes

  1. Warm-up: easy jog, skips and arm circles · 2 min
    Start slow and build up. Loosen up; nothing should hurt.
  2. Pointed Toes and Tight Knees · 4 min
    Point and press. Safety: Use a mat or soft floor with space all around you. Stop if anything hurts.
  3. Crab Walk Path · 4 min
    Hips high like a crab. Safety: Good form beats more reps: stop the set when your form slips. Muscles may feel tired; stop if a joint hurts.
  4. Cool-down: walk and easy stretches · 2 min
    Breathe slowly and hold each stretch about 20 seconds, never to pain.

Want the rest of the plan?

This sample is 3 of the 7 diving plans SSTracker has for this group. In SSTracker every step is on the screen, your child logs the work, and you see it. No club needed: the family plan is $7.50 a month per player, or $12 a month for the whole household, and the first 14 days are free.

Get the full plan free for 14 days Coach or club director? Set up your team free Print a free week for another sport or age

The drills in this week

Floor Hurdle Walk

Ages 7 and up · 8 min

Learn the walk and hurdle of a springboard approach on the floor, slowly and calmly.

  1. Put a line on the floor about four big steps long.
  2. Walk three even steps along the line with your arms relaxed.
  3. On the last step, lift one knee up high and swing both arms up.
  4. Land on two feet together at the end of the line and stand tall.
  5. Do 12 slow walks.

Coach's cue: Walk tall, knee up, land together.

Bring: tape or chalk line

Safety: Land on two feet with soft knees on a non-slip surface. Stop if your knees or ankles hurt.

Standing Start Position

Ages 7 and up · 6 min

Practice the still, tall start a diver uses at the end of a platform or board before a standing dive.

  1. Stand with your toes on a line and your heels together.
  2. Arms straight by your sides, eyes looking ahead, chin level.
  3. Hold still and tall for 5 slow seconds.
  4. Step off and do it again 10 times.

Coach's cue: Still, tall, ready.

Bring: line on the floor

Safety: Use a mat or soft floor with space all around you. Stop if anything hurts.

Statue Start Game

Ages 7 and up · 6 min

A family game: walk around, and when someone calls "statue", freeze in a perfect standing start.

  1. Walk around the room slowly.
  2. When your grown-up calls "statue", step to the line and freeze tall, heels together, arms down.
  3. They check your chin, arms and heels.
  4. Play 10 rounds, then swap who calls.

Coach's cue: Freeze tall and still.

Bring: line on the floor, family member

Safety: Use a mat or soft floor with space all around you. Stop if anything hurts.

Arm Swing to Toes

Ages 7 and up · 6 min

Learn the arm swing that lifts you off the board, finishing tall on your toes.

  1. Stand tall with your arms at your sides.
  2. Swing your arms forward and up past your ears.
  3. Rise onto your toes as your arms reach the top.
  4. Hold for 2 seconds; do 15.

Coach's cue: Arms up, rise up.

Safety: Use a mat or soft floor with space all around you. Stop if anything hurts.

Straight Reach Jumps

Ages 7 and up · 8 min

Jump straight up from two feet with a tall reach, the same shape as leaving the board.

  1. Bend your knees a little and swing your arms down.
  2. Swing your arms up and jump straight up.
  3. Stay straight in the air with arms by your ears.
  4. Land softly on two feet; do 3 sets of 8.

Coach's cue: Up, not forward.

Bring: mat or grass

Safety: Land on two feet with soft knees on a non-slip surface. Stop if your knees or ankles hurt.

Simon Says Reach Jumps

Ages 7 and up · 8 min

A family game of Simon Says where every "jump" is a straight jump with a tall reach.

  1. Your grown-up calls moves like "Simon says reach" or "Simon says jump".
  2. Every jump goes straight up with arms by your ears.
  3. Land softly on two feet.
  4. Play for 5 minutes and take a break when you need it.

Coach's cue: Straight up, soft landing.

Bring: mat or grass, family member

Safety: Land on two feet with soft knees on a non-slip surface. Stop if your knees or ankles hurt.

Pointed Toes and Tight Knees

Ages 7 and up · 6 min

Judges look at your feet and knees; practice keeping them pointed and squeezed.

  1. Sit with your legs straight and together.
  2. Point your toes hard and press the backs of your knees down.
  3. Hold for 10 seconds, then relax.
  4. Do 10 holds.

Coach's cue: Point and press.

Bring: mat

Safety: Use a mat or soft floor with space all around you. Stop if anything hurts.

Crab Walk Path

Ages 6 to 10 · 6 min

Walk like a crab, tummy up, on hands and feet. Builds strong shoulders and hips.

  1. Sit, place hands behind you and feet in front.
  2. Lift your hips off the ground.
  3. Walk forward, backward and sideways along a path.
  4. Do 4 trips of 10 steps.

Coach's cue: Hips high like a crab.

Bring: open space

Safety: Good form beats more reps: stop the set when your form slips. Muscles may feel tired; stop if a joint hurts.

Safety for ages 7 to 10

  • Plans for this age group use beginner drills only. Advanced drills open from age 13 in the app.
  • Home plans use only drills for a room, garage or yard. Stop if anything hurts.

Before you start: diving

  • A pool that meets diving-depth standards (about 12 ft under a 1 m board), and a diving coach on deck.
  • Head-first entries only in deep water your coach has checked; never at a home or hotel pool.
  • Learn head-first entries in order: sitting, kneeling, then standing, with the coach beside you.
  • Somersaults on trampoline or dry board only in a spotting belt with a coach.
  • Board height is picked by the coach, within your age group's limit.
For every sport and age (7)
  • Head knock or concussion signs (headache, dizziness, confusion, feeling "off"): when in doubt, sit them out. See a doctor, and no return the same day.
  • Back to sport only with a doctor's written OK, after a step-by-step return. Every U.S. state has a youth concussion law.
  • Heat: drink water before, during and after. Take shade breaks, ease into hot weather over about two weeks, and stop if dizzy, sick or headachy.
  • Lightning: if you hear thunder or see lightning, go inside a building or a closed car. Wait 30 minutes after the last thunder (the 30-30 rule).
  • Pain is a stop sign, not something to push through. Stop and tell a grown-up; pain that lasts or comes back each session needs a doctor.
  • Water and rest are part of training: 1-2 rest days a week, plenty of sleep, a meal or snack before and after, and other sports welcome.
  • Know where the nearest AED (heart defibrillator) is, and who calls for help in an emergency.

The research behind these plans

Which drills are shown at which age, and the safety notes, follow the 29 sources below: national governing bodies, medical associations and studies on youth sport (last reviewed October 2026). Where no study gives an exact number, the plans use cautious defaults, and we change them as the research does.

Diving: governing bodies, safety and development (9)
Youth athletic development and safety (20)

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