Hi there, my name is Olivia the Orca and I am one of the largest and most powerful dolphins in the world.
My friend Humphrey told me how well you did last term so I am coming along to see if I can help you swim as well as me! We are going to become even better this term by swimming flatter and faster in the water not to mention the fun we are going to have doing "Big star" prone floats and relay races with hoops and scooters. I will be watching you with my friends and can't wait to see what you can do!
Let me tell you a little bit more …
During this term we will be working on increasing the streamlining position in front crawl and breast stroke by introducing a thumb entry into the water and bilateral breathing to keep your chin low in the water. During the self-rescue/survival session we will be showing your child how to deal with flooded goggles in the pool to avoid those little upsets and will also try a "Big Star" prone float, which requires balance and teamwork. We will also be mixing up our floats by doing a Star Float, Mushroom Float then back to Star Float, which is great fun!
Snorkelling sessions are still going to be great fun as we do relays on the scooters and snorkel "whale blow" practice using hoops to dive through. We will still have our usual distance week where your child can use these streamlined skills to hopefully swim a longer distance and gain a higher badge.
I am an Orca but am known to some people as a killer whale as I am one of the world's most powerful predators! I am so strong I eat mammals such as seals, sea lions and even small whales so some of my friends like Sally and Manny have to swim very fast if they see me and I'm a bit peckish! I have teeth that are 10cm long and live in cold coastal waters in any area from the Polar Regions to the Equator.
Orcas spend most of their day being very active, we love to jump out of the water like an acrobat! And I love to tail-slap on the surface of the water. We are really sociable and love to swim and play with our friends in our pod. We are also very clever and quick to learn from our mummies and daddies.
You cannot miss me when I swim around the sea as I am a very distinctive black and white colour and travel in pods of up to 40 of my friends! Teamwork is great when you want to catch lots of food or do well and you may experience this in your relay races this term!
Like Humphrey we like to make a variety of sounds in the water, which we use to communicate with each other and as a tool to find out what's around us. Our sound bounces off objects and that tells us what the objects size, location and shape is! My mum carried me around in her tummy for twice as long as your mum carried you and she continues to stay close to us to help us swim well and stay safe -just like your mum or dad does in the lesson! Have fun this term and can't wait to see if you can swim as fast as me!
Next term, you will be meeting Barnaby The Blue Whale