The Class: Swimming and Water Safety Intensive

Students learn how to improve their own fitness and understand the science behind swimming, while also learning first aid, CPR, and other safety skills to practice around water. Students explore topics through experiences in the pool and the open water, from taking a community water aerobics class to working with a swim rescue firefighter. They develop their cardiorespiratory endurance by learning and practicing fundamental swimming strokes and fitness games and activities like modified water polo and water aerobics, to name a few. Students also dive into documentaries and projects and read the book Why We Swim by Bonnie Tsui.
 

The Task: Deepen Connection to Water and an Understanding of Wellness 

Physical Education Teacher and Department Chair Kayla Robertson created this intensive around five themes based on the book Why We Swim: well-being, community, survival, flow, and competition. Her main aim, though, is for students to diversify their idea of what a swimmer is and for each student to find their own connection to water. She wants each student to explore how they enjoy the water, whether that means sitting by the water, having fun on the water—say, paddleboarding or playing a game in the water—or swimming competitively. “The book reminds us that everybody is not a swimmer, but everyone has a story to tell about their relationship to water,” says Kayla. By the end of the three-week intensive, she hopes the students have a clear idea of how water and swimming activities can help them achieve an overall sense of well-being.
 

The Outcomes

During this intensive, students connect to the water in so many ways. “We talk about this sense of ‘blue mind.’ Science shows that being near, on, or in water can make you feel happier. When we are close to, on, or in the water, we can disconnect from the busyness of the world, and be calm and relaxed,” said Kayla.

The students are introduced to many water opportunities that connect them with the themes, especially for those who don’t see themselves as swimmers. When the class went on an overnight adventure to Orcas Island on a beautiful sunny day, they did a cold-water immersion in the icy water in a calm bay inlet.

“This was thrilling, exciting, and nerve-wracking. It’s salt water and there’s jellyfish and crabs. But it was a choose-your-own-adventure challenge, so some just dipped their toes in, and some sprinted to the water and dove in,” said Kayla. “Afterward, we warmed up in hot soaking tubs together. When I asked a student who isn’t a strong swimmer yet how they felt, they said, ‘Calm and relaxed.’ We talked about the shared sense of community that comes from doing the cold-water and hot-water immersions together, especially when you’re able to relax with a gorgeous view of nature.”

Kayla believes an overarching sense of well-being comes from doing things that benefit all aspects of health, including physical health, mental health, social health, and environmental health. “Swimming is inherently multidimensional. When you are in the water outside, you’re connecting with so many different elements of yourself and nature. You might be working on your physical health, using swimming as exercise. But it could also be meditative, even if you just consider the way we breathe when we swim,” she said.

The students learn to inhale quickly above water and then exhale slowly underwater. They also learn that this type of breathing activates their parasympathetic nervous system, which relaxes the body. “There’s also a rhythm and repetition to swimming. Oftentimes, that rhythm is why you feel a sense of mindfulness: when you can let your thoughts go and be present,” said Kayla. “As a student becomes more confident swimming, that sense of flow leads to their sense of well-being.”

Student Sophie Angiulo, 11th grade, said the class helped her refine her definition of wellness. She thinks mental health is a big part of wellness, and that physical exercise is a big part of being mentally happy. “Being able to go to the pool every day and having all these water experiences helped my well-being. I feel like I am one with nature when I am in the water. I feel at peace and well,” she said. “I learned that many people find their well-being from water. But I also learned that this looks extremely different for everyone. The water has a lot to offer: pretty views, beautiful sounds, and more.”

Student Loobna Shego, 11th grade, shared that swimming is great for both her physical and mental health. “When I’m swimming, it’s just me and the water; my other problems disappear,” she said.

During the intensive, Loobna learned about AfroSwimmer, a community that uplifts and supports Black swimmers. “I was so interested in seeing how swimming and blackness intersect and how swimming brought together this group of people,” she said. “AfroSwimmer is a community that bonds over struggle and success. Being a young Black swimmer, seeing this community was so inspiring and motivates me to become a better swimmer.”

GET TO KNOW TEACHER KAYLA ROBERTSON

As a high school student, being involved in sports and school was a way for Kayla to find a positive community. Her first job, at age 16, was teaching swimming lessons to children. She didn’t swim competitively until 10th grade, but at one point held seven school records and was the first female at her school to compete at state as an individual swimmer. She also met her husband on the high school swim team. Kayla became a PE teacher because her teachers and coaches were influential mentors in her life. She relishes the joyful moments of triumph in the classroom, such as when students are brave and jump into the deep end. “I love helping students believe in themselves—when they do something beyond their own expectations and spark creativity and joy through movement. Teachers help students discover their potential, and sometimes we first find that confidence through our bodies in physical endeavors. Then that confidence carries over into their life,” said Kayla. She  also loves designing curriculum and innovating with her colleagues, and that’s part of why she likes being the chair of the PE department.