Hi there, my name is Barnaby the Blue Whale and I am the largest creature to have ever lived on earth!
We are going to have so much fun this term doing different skills to make you as strong a swimmer as me. The most exciting thing is swimming in your pyjamas which we will do on rescue day, which is the best thing ever! Due to my huge size I will have to watch you from the side of the pool but I can't wait to see you dive deep in the water and become as strong as me!
Let me tell you a little bit more …
This term we ask you to bring pyjamas for the children on self rescue day 3 to practice jumping in and swimming with clothes on, which is not only a huge hit with the kids but a life saving and stamina building skill.
As well as the confidence building exercises on self-rescue day, we will also be doing several skills to help the children swim faster in the water. We will particularly develop breast stroke by teaching a one arm sweep in the children glide, as well as encourage the children to swim in a more repetitive and rhythmic manner with our pull, breathe, kick and glide.
At the end of Level 21, we aim for everyone to swim 100 metres with some doing 200 or even 300 metres but remember try not to push them too hard as they all develop at different speeds! We also have lots of exciting exercises in the snorkeling sessions including Scooter relay races, clearing snorkels and scooter tows.
It is pretty cool being the largest creature to ever live on Earth! (Even bigger than a dinosaur!). I can grow up to 30 metres long and weigh up to 200 tons. My tongue alone can weigh as much as an elephant and my heart as much as a car!
We get to grow this big by eating tiny shrimplike animals called "Krill" that live at the bottom of the ocean but have to eat up to 4 tons of them a day! Sometimes we also like to eat copepods which are tiny crustaceans. I live all over the world but like to travel near the Equator in the summer and live in warm waters. I have a flat broad body and am a graceful mammal that can swim up to 30 km per hour. I have some special tricks to show you this term to help you glide in the water as well as me!
I am an animal that is said to feel actual emotions so I can't wait to feel happy and excited when I see you in your pyjamas on self-rescue day! Unlike Olivia I often travel alone or in small groups but am a lot friendlier. I am also known to have the loudest voice to my fellow blue whale friends and it is said they can hear me up to 1.600km away. I hope you have lots of fun this term-I will use my low load voice to cheer you on distance day and throughout the term!
Next term, you will be meeting Billy The Basking Shark