Enough with the drills! The coaching strategy 10-year-old swimmers need most

Coaching 10-and-under swimmers often feels like a never-ending battle of planning practices, explaining drills, and, most importantly, getting kids to listen. For age group swim coaches, these challenges can easily eat up the majority of practice time. Yet, when we take a closer look at what actually helps 10-year-olds thrive in the water, one coaching strategy stands out above all others: consistency.

Too often, coaches introduce complicated drills long before their swimmers are developmentally ready. Instead, building consistency into practice routines not only sets swimmers up for long-term success, but also meets the swimmers where they are, cognitively and physically.

Let’s learn why complex drills oftentimes are a waste of time for this age group and how coaches can adapt their strategies to create confident, skilled athletes.

Where drills fail for 10-year-old swimmers

Most swim coaches bring years of personal experience in the sport. They were likely taught with drill-heavy practices in high school or college, and they naturally pass onto their swimmers what worked for them. But here’s the catch: drills that are effective for experienced athletes aren’t effective for beginners.

For swimmers in the 10-and-under age group, the fine motor control, muscular strength, and cognitive ability required to master technical drills just isn’t there yet. Asking a 10-year-old to refine the nuances of a high-elbow catch or the fingertip drag drill falls on deaf ears.

That doesn’t mean drills have no place for this age group—it just means that the timing and structure of those drills matter. At this stage, swimmers benefit far more from simple, consistent, and repeatable tasks that reinforce the basics, rather than developing niche techniques to overcome poor strength.

How the developing mind learns (Piaget’s theory in practice)

Since we’re concerned with 10-and-under swimmers, let’s take a look at what these swimmers are cognitively capable of putting into practice. According to Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget, most 10-year-olds are transitioning from the preoperational stage to the concrete operational stage of cognitive development.

• Preoperational stage (up to ~7 years old): Kids are self-focused, learn mostly through trial and error, and struggle with rules or structured systems. They’re just beginning to realize that the world has order.
• Concrete operational stage (~7–11 years old): Kids start to think more logically about concrete tasks. They understand cause-and-effect, rules, and sequencing. However, they still struggle with abstract or hypothetical thinking, which begins in the formal operational stage.

Here’s what that means for our 10-year-old swimmer:

• They’re ready to understand rules (“streamline off every wall,” “don’t breathe off the first stroke after a turn”).
• They can follow structured practice routines without constant redirection.
• They’re beginning to connect body movements with outcomes (“if I kick harder, I move faster”).
• But—they’re not yet ready for abstract ideas like “feel the water” or complex technique changes.

This is why consistency in practice plans is so powerful. It reinforces predictable patterns, helping swimmers strengthen their mental connection between instruction and performance.

The key to long-term improvement: consistency

So, what does this look like in practice? Here are coaching strategies designed specifically for 10-year-old swimmers:

• Warm-Ups: Keep them structured and predictable (e.g., streamlines every wall; backstroke every 4th 25).
• Stretching: Use the same pre-practice stretch sequence daily.
• Drills: Stick with simple, foundational drills until they’re automatic. Don’t rush progression.
• Main Sets: Stick to consistent send-offs, even if it feels too easy or too hard (50x25s on 1:00). The predictability builds discipline.
• Practice Etiquette: Enforce simple rules like “no talking while sets are explained.”

This consistency doesn’t just improve swimming—it supports swimmers’ cognitive growth, giving them the structure they crave while reinforcing their developing ability to link effort with outcomes.

But don’t fool yourself into thinking your swimmers aren’t improving: in fact quite the opposite. Experienced swimmers who were introduced to advanced technical drills at a young age oftentimes brush off such helpful drills due in large part to the familiarity and monotony without true understanding. Coaches must learn to pocket advanced drills until swimmers build the foundations–strength, coordination, and cognitive functionality. These repetitive practices, although seemingly pointless, will position your 10-and-under swimmers for GREAT success as they age.

Where coaches often struggle

Coaches feel pressure to progress their swimmers quickly. This pressure oftentimes comes from head program coaches, board members, and, all to often, from parents themselves. But don’t give in. Basics like streamlines and body position can feel too simple to spend practice time on. But here’s the trap: without mastering the basics, swimmers will plateau later.

By slowing down and committing to consistent fundamentals during practice, coaches actually accelerate long-term improvement. Streamlines, basic kick sets, and body position drills may feel repetitive, but they are the foundation for future performance. Pocket those advanced drills until swimmers build these foundations.

Repetitive practices, although seemingly pointless from an advanced coaching perspective, will position your 10-and-under swimmers for extraordinary growth and success as they develop physically, cognitively, and socially.

Bonus: emphasize the fun

Of course, consistency shouldn’t mean monotony. For this age group, fun is a critical piece of motivation. Coaches who can balance repetition with creativity keep kids engaged while reinforcing fundamentals. Try adding:

• Games with structure (relay races, challenge sets, trivia during vertical kicking).
• Visualization exercises (“imagine you’re a dolphin pushing off the wall”).
• Rewards for consistency (recognizing who remembers streamlines every time).

When consistency is combined with fun, swimmers build both skills and the love of the sport that will carry them into their teen years and beyond.

Final takeaways

The best coaching strategies for 10-year-old swimmers aren’t about the most advanced drills or technical cues, they’re about consistency, structure, and fun.

By adjusting your coaching to meet swimmers where they are developmentally—using Piaget’s theory as a guide—you will help them master the fundamentals, stay engaged, and lay the foundation for future success.

Consistency may not sound glamorous, but it is the coaching strategy that will truly make the biggest impact on the success of your swimmers.