My 4 Swimmers by Reece

My 4 Swimmers by Reece - April 2022 Scholarship Essay

In high school every summer from March to July I would wake up at the crack of dawn and go down to the neighborhood pool to spread the joy of swimming to young children eager to learn to swim faster. As a junior coach I encountered many kids who both challenged me as a teacher, and as a leader. I was pushed to better myself and improve to give each kid the best experience I could. Each day, I coached four practices containing a wide variety of different age groups and skill levels.
My first practice of the day I had my youngest swimmers, one of which was named Lucy. Lucy was a timid eight year old girl afraid of the water. When we first met, she refused to get in the water; however, I eventually befriended her and gained her trust. As she grew to trust me and became more comfortable in the water. She eventually would go off on her own and became a capable swimmer. At the end of the season, she gave me a handwritten note thanking me for being her friend with a cute drawing of us swimming together.
My second practice of the day I had a slightly older age group. In this age group I had a swimmer who was struggling to improve. Regan was a young girl who had experience swimming but came short of the times she needed to get to qualify for the next level. As her coach I wanted to help her so in between laps I would talk to her and help her set clear, achievable goals. Through these daily goals, I was able to lead her into making dozens small improvements, which combined to help her achieve the times she longed for.
In the third practice I had a swimmer that reminded me of myself, easily distracted and hyperactive, a short redhead named Henry. I initially had issues motivating him to try and he wasn’t retaining any information. As the year went on, I found I needed to structure lessons in the forms of mini competitions on order to engage him. Whether it was seeing who could dive in the water farther or seeing who was the fastest; I made it fun to participate, which always grabbed his attention and made him excited to show up.
My final practice of the day I had the swimmer that challenged me the most. I was in charge of coaching an autistic boy named Thomas, whose challenges included communication skills and need for 1-on-1 coaching. He pushed my skills as a coach so in order to give him the best experience I could, I combined all the skills I used throughout the day. I used the relationship skills and empathy I gained from Lucy, the planning and communication skills I gained from Regan, and the creativity and learning agility I learned from Henry. Coaching young athletes like Thomas, Regan, Lucy, and Henry and finding ways to help them succeed brought me joy and experience that I’ll value for the rest of my life. These opportunities improved me not only as a coach, but as a Person. I have used and will continue to use these skills as I progress through college and beyond in my leadership and daily life as a team member and student.