Clive School support and embrace swim and survive

Clive School in the sunny Hawke’s Bay have always embraced the importance of learning swim and survival skills.

The school is situated next door to the Clive River and Principal Brian Eales knows all too well the dangers around open and moving water.

Last year students from Clive received support from Swimming New Zealand Swim Safe advisor Fiona Hurley through the State Kiwi Swim Safe programme.

This year Fiona went back to the school to further enhance the skills of students.

Fiona worked with teachers and students for two days using a combination of classroom based dry-land learning and practical pool sessions.

Students had to use critical thinking around their aquatic environment including beaches, rivers, and pools to list not only the different environments kiwis enjoy spending time in, but also identifying the potential hazards around each of these areas.

Students then had to come up with ways to eliminate or minimize the hazards listed and apply them to practical pool sessions.

Students had to consider pool safety and they were really challenged in the water with new ideas and activities that used lifejackets, survival strokes, and everyday pieces of equipment that could be used in a survival session with the key focus being - keeping yourself safe.

Joanna Harris, Injury Prevention Coordinator for Te Taiwhenua o Heretaunga, came along and supported the students with their survival programme, not only in the pool but also in the classroom where students were given specific scenarios to discuss with their peers before planning and demonstrating their outcomes to the class.

Deputy Principal Rebecca North commented,

"Swimming New Zealand and Fiona have provided Clive School with resources, skills, and expertise. Fiona works with all schools and offers a service that caters to the needs of your students. Learning to swim is essential for survival in and around water. Fiona worked with our teachers to up-skill their knowledge and further develop their confidence in teaching students how to swim and be safe. The survival swimming techniques she taught our students will assist them in their further endeavours".