Aquatics (badges)

Background

• One of the Digital Badges for Play.CLOH.org
• Aquatics

Badge Builder Template for LRNG

Basic Badge Information

• Title
  • Play.CLOH.org Aquatics
• Interest
  • Sport
• Age Appropriateness
  • 13+
• LRNG LVL*
  • Level Up

Description

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Criteria, Competencies and Standards

* Define the criteria (learning goals) that must be met to earn this Badge.

Opportunity (Optional)

* Describe the opportunity that will be unlocked for learners who earn this Badge.

Tasks

• Do a certain number of the XPs within the line-up in the aquatics realm.

XPs in Aquatics include:

• XP/Deep Water
• XP/Pre Lifeguard
• XP/Open Water Swimmer
• XP/Mile Swim

• XP/Kayak Nadadores
• XP/Kayak Pittsburgh
• XP/Underwater Hockey
• XP/Water Polo
• XP/SKWIM/Level 1
• XP/SKWIM/Level 2
• XP/SKWIM/Level 3
• XP/SKWIM/Level 4
• XP/SKWIM/Level 5

• XP/25x25y@:25
• XP/Perfect 50

• XP/Sprint Salo Pulse Plots

• XP/Apprentice

• XP/Sportsmanship
• XP/Teamwork

Background

XP/Aquatics mark two achievements for swimmers that enable greater opportunities for progression within aquatics. These milestones are gateways to safety and movement. Go all around the pool after passing the deep water test and move onto a lifeguarding class.

Displaying the skills to earn XP/Swimming/Deep Water indicates to the pool's lifeguards, the swim instructors, guardians and peers that swimming in the deep end of the pool is okay. Being able to swim in deep-water settings in the pools we visit is fun and offers better peace of mind for everyone. When one can swim in the deep water, new challenges can occur such as diving, flip-turns, treading water. Most of all, playing full-pool tag, and deep-water water polo and SKWIM can happen, otherwise, it is just shallow-end of the pool.

Digital Badges/Swimming/Pre Lifeguard marks another swim achievement. To earn this badge, complete the three requirements necessary before one can enter a training class to become a water-park lifeguard at Sandcastle: Swimming 200 yards, treading for 2-minutes with only your legs, and deep-water-retrival of a diving brink. Plus, the teachers have required a water safety and swim knowledge assignment that demonstrates a commitment to swim safety.

Get XP/Swimming/Pre Lifeguard regardless of age. Individuals need to be 16-years old to be hired by Citiparks to be a lifeguard, but those who demonstrate the skills and knowledge, even at younger ages, such as 10, can get this badge. Then, when old enough, meeting the per-requisite swim ability should not prevent you from getting into the lifeguard classes. XP/Swimming/Pre Lifeguard makes an economic statement and signals to those that train and hire lifeguards at Citiparks pools and Sandcastle that you are a training-class candidate and great job prospect for future staffs.

Links

• XP/Swimming/Deep Water
• XP/Swimming/Pre Lifeguard
• Digital Badges/SKWIM
• XP/Water Polo
• http://cloh.org/wp/archives/category/digital-badges

Insights

Safety is an integral component of swimming due to the potential risks associated with aquatic sports. Knowledge of good practice in and around the pool is an important means of making the water a safer place for every individual and reducing accidents in the pool as a whole. Another part of this process is the knowledge of when each individual is ready to progress to deep water conditions unattended. This enables athletes to begin the lap-swimming process, as well as utilizing the full pool for SKWIM and water polo.

Future Plans

• See the blog rant about the bridge to the badges of USA Swimming, http://play.cloh.org/2016/05/12/play-cloh-org-and-usa-swimmings-deck-pass-can-make-lrng-float/

• The progression for learning proper technique and developing the skill required to swim each stroke effectively begins on dry land. This teaching process culminates when the athlete has the knowledge of how to perform each stroke properly and transitions into the pool to begin developing the skill of each stroke. XPs in the future will mark both the accomplishment of attaining the knowledge required to perform each stroke and the skill of performing each stroke effectively in the pool.

( Long range goals encourage athletes to strive for better fitness even when incremental increases in performance seem small. The practice and discipline required to attain these long term goals constitutes a disposition of practice and perseverance that is characteristic of swimmers at every level. As athletes strive to increase their swimming performance for individual strokes, they necessarily become more skilled and prepared for SKWIM and water polo, as well as achieving overall better fitness. Badges in the future will provide long term swimming goals (e.g. competitive times, performance of the full medley of strokes, commitment to lap-swimming training).

XPs in Aquatics:

Deep Water	Pre Lifeguard
SKWIM	Water Polo Knowledge