New Years Resolutions and DC Wave Swim Team.

New years new goals!! Every new year during lessons I asked my students to talk about their New Year’s resolution goals and I also talk to parents to help develops a swim

Goal. Some of my students have decided that their goal is to get to be on the DC WaVE swim team! That would make me soooo incredibly happy—- and that is my goal for many of my students….so if that is one of your goals, here is some information that you will need.

1. Swimming can be a life long passion which it is for me---- it does NOT have to be competitive!

2. Sometimes when we push kids to do something they like a lot--- it can be great. If we push them more into something they like just fine--- or are not so into--- it can take the love out of that sport, or create unnecessary pressure---- so first ask yourself what kind of kid is my son/daughter and what environment do they do best in? A super competitive environment? Or a not so competitive environment--- where if they show a high level of interest they can progress and then go to the next level?

3. I was a very passionate swimmer when I was a kid and I was on the swim team growing up--- but I was the slowest kid on the A team--- which made me feel not as good as the rest of the kids. I still love swimming today. With the violin--- which I've done all my life---- my parents pushed me a bit more and kind of pushed me off of it and so I started doing guitar and piano instead as my rebellion.....

4. So--- if you're kid is happy where they are--great. - If your kid wants to be on the swim team or developmental swim team, let's talk about it in person and make our plan for a realistic plan with a positive outcome. That would include me talking with your child about it, introducing your child and you to the coach, and us working in the benchmarks for the swim team......

Does your child want to try out for the DC wave team? Or the DC wave junior team? The tryouts are usually towards the middle or end of August/September. Last year they were held July 15-17.

are the things that you need to know:

yOU MuSTregister in advance on the dpr website in advance in order to try out for the team you can’t try out for the team unless you have a Dpr login so make sure that you sign up for all of those things to guarantee that you can at least try out and then sign up for the DC junior wave team.

What is thee difference between dC wave team and DC JUNIOR team?

The DC wave team is actual swim team and the DC wave junior team is the developmental team that kids wanting to be on the swim team can go to for nine weeks and again once try out for the team after the nine weeks. In order to be on any of these teams you MUST try out if you do not try out you cannot be on anything not even the Junior team.

If you try out for the DC wave team it’s OK if you don’t make it because they offer you a code that automatically can sign you up for the DC wave JUNIOR team ——-which is nine weeks of classes twice a week.

Make up of the dc wave JUnIOr TEAM :

Each class is 45 minutes where the kids work on four different strokes for for 15 minutes each eight times. Don’t fret—— your child on the dc junior wave team will have one more chance at the end of the 9 weeks to qualify to get on the dc wave team.  The ninth week of the DC Junior wave team, you learn dives and not exactly how to do a Flipturn but they talk about it and at least teach you how to flip.

How hard is the team?

Ages 7-13 are allowed on the team—- but seven year olds rarely make it. Emotional maturity I think is also important to make it on the team. Practices are one hour and 15 minutes so it is a pretty long time for ages seven through 13 to swim for that long so does an average seven-year-old get on the team? A lot of the times no…. I have had a few pretty awesome swimmers that have tried out for the team and made it to the developmental junior team and realized that it was too hard for them and dropped out after the first few lessons….so yes- it is difficult. It is more reasonable to start out for this swim team at age 9 or ten because you have stronger bigger bodies and perhaps more experience in the water at that time. If you would like a checklist of all the skills that they are going to be asking your child to do during try outs—-trying out for you can look on the Dpr DC wave website or you can contact me through text to get more information (240)-888-4269. The coach of the dc wave swim team for the 7-13 year olds is named Michelle and she is also on the water wizards team with me.

Now I am not affiliated with dc wave swim team and I do not coach the dc wave swim team. However, I do coach the Capital Sea Devils High School Swim Team at Holton Arms and that is a separate swim club I coach for, in addition to doing private lessons for Go Fish Swim School, my own swim company as me the lead coach and Chelsea---my assistant coach. Good luck! Let me know what your swim goals are friends! And happy new year!

Love coach Shu Shu