Carnarvon children enjoying the Swim for Fruit program at the Carnarvon Pool
Carnarvon students make swimming and survival strides in Swim for Fruit program
Primary school students of all ages from Carnarvon flocked to the Carnarvon Pool over the course of Term 4, 2021 to participate in the Go for 2&5 Swim for Fruit program, getting involved in a range of aquatic activities with the incentive of earning part of their daily ‘2 & 5’ intake.
Children from Kindergarten to Year 6 from the coastal Gascoyne town, which is located approximately 900km north of Perth, regularly participated in the Go for 2&5 Regional and Remote Aboriginal Communities Swimming Program (Swim for Fruit) facilitated by Pool Manager Jenny Little. The program, which is sponsored by Healthway, has enabled Royal Life Saving WA to expand on school-based Swim and Survive programs to help encourage healthier lifestyles, physical activity, and enhance community cohesion.
Kindy and Pre-Primary students played lots of water familiarisation games with their swim teacher Jessica. The children from this age group gained confidence over the term with submerging and collecting toys, floating on their backs and completing rocket kicking across the pool.
In the 50-metre pool, students from Years 1-3 spent their time enjoying the water, participating in a variety of fun aquatic activities and games. The students took part in numerous relays and competitive laps, racing their peers using noodles or floaties, and competing in dive toy games, obstacle courses, ‘Marco Polo’ and ‘Scarecrow’. There wasn’t a game the children didn’t play over their term, with their swimming ability and confidence growing as they worked together to participate in swimming challenges.
The older students in Years 4-6 became skilled in different methods of rescues, as well as the order of rescues for different types of swimmers based on difficulty. Putting their theory to the test, students were challenged to individual and team rescue initiatives over the term, obstacle courses, underwater searches, manikin carry events and survival swims, becoming confident swimmers and lifesavers.
With Aboriginal children being 3.6 times more likely to drown than non-Aboriginal children, the benefits of the Swim for Fruit program extend beyond just promoting a healthier lifestyle. Students gain vital swimming and survival skills that improve their water confidence and prepare them for potential future incidents.
Students in Carnarvon thrived over the course of Term 4 last year, immersing themselves in all the Swim for Fruit program had to offer them to grow their aquatic confidence. With the significant strides students made last year, we look forward to seeing what they accomplish at the pool this year!
Follow the link below to learn more about the Swim for Fruit program.
