Swimming drills for 8 year olds

At 8

The age at a glance

This year

At 8, swimmers stay on push-offs from the wall: SSTracker gives no racing starts under 11, stricter than USA Swimming.

Drills this year

Beginner drills. Developing drills start at 11, 3 years from now.

Starts

At 8, swimmers stay on push-offs from the wall: SSTracker gives no racing starts under 11, stricter than USA Swimming.

In the water

Under 14, a grown-up stays within arm's reach, and a lifeguard or certified coach watches every swim (SSTracker's rule).

Breath

No breath-holding games or contests. One normal breath before going under, no fast breathing, and come up when you want air.

At 8

Organized sport in all: no more hours a week than the child's age (NATA), so at most 8 hours for an 8 year old, with two rest days a week.

At home

SSTracker keeps one home session for an 8 year old within 30 minutes and plans at most 3 home days a week, with rest days between.

29 drills

Drills for 8 year olds

Every drill here is one the app opens for 8 year olds, at the level for the age. Each page has the steps, a diagram where the setup can be drawn, three ways to make it a game and a practice log to print.

What you need at home

What you need at home at 8

13 of the 32 swimming drills for 8 year olds work at home, in a room, garage or yard. Most used: mat (4 of the 13 drills), mirror or partner (1), notebook (1), resistance band (1), swim bag (1), wall (1). 4 drills need nothing but space.

• Stroke Shapes on LandAges 7 and up · 6 min
• Band Shoulder StrengthAges 7 and up · 8 min
• Dry-Land Flutter LegsAges 7 and up · 8 min
• Dry-Land Start PopAges 7 and up · 8 min
• Dryland CoreAges 7 and up · 10 min
• Hollow Holds and RocksAges 7 and up · 8 min
• Meet Day ChecklistAges 7 and up · 6 min
• One Good Thing LogAges 7 and up · 5 min

Questions parents ask

Swimming for 8 year olds: questions and answers