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The Discovery Duckling Awards

The Discovery Ducklings Awards 1-4 form part of the Swim England Pre-School Framework, this is the first part of the Swim England Learn to Swim Programme.

These Awards are targeted at babies and young children who are new to swimming. They are suitable from birth (subject to the health visitor advice being followed) and lead nicely into the Duckling Awards.

They are usually delivered in an adult and baby/adult and child setting. Children should remain close to their parents/carers throughout the activities to build their security and confidence.

ℹ️ Visit our parent hub to find loads of great advice you can share with parents/carers who have enrolled their baby or young child into lessons.

The primary aim of the teacher is to provide a safe, nurturing environment with a lot of repetition. This repetition is made much more fun by the use of rhyme, keywords in the rhyme encourage the same movement to be reproduced.

Why should you deliver the Discovery Ducklings Awards as part of your lessons programme?

They are designed to be gentle, fun and a secure way for young children and parents/carers to be introduced to the swimming environment. They promote early water confidence and basic motor skills that underpin the Learn to Swim Stages 1-7.

Alex Barret from our Learn to Swim team said, “From a young age reward and recognition is really important in keeping learners motivated.”

▶️ Watch our I CAN Awards video to find out why it is important to reward babies and young children who are new to swimming.

Here’s why Debbie from the Beau Séjour Swim School delivers the Discovery Ducklings Awards…

“We’re delighted to be able to offer the Discovery Duckling badges and certificates.

“These awards are a really great introduction to the world of swimming, and Beau Séjour Swim School is very proud to follow this great scheme, starting with the Discovery Duckling Awards.”

Interested in implementing the Discovery Duckling Awards into your lessons programme? Below are a variety of options of where you can go next to find out more…

📧 Email learntoswim@swimming.org to enquire about how to integrate these Awards into your swimming lesson programme.

🛒 Visit the Swim England webshop to view these Awards.

❓ Want to shout about any Awards that form part of your swimming lesson programme? Email us at learntoswim@swimming.org to feature in our Awards video series!

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