Making Lessons More Inclusive - Equipment

We already know that the equipment that we use in lessons should be FUNctional and safe, but what else should we consider when thinking about inclusion?

The colour of your equipment should be a big consideration. As aquatic professionals we all know why blue swimming costumes are a poor choice, yet the industry has countless equipment that is coloured blue.

If you use a blue kickboard you are putting your swimmers who normally have a visual impairment at a serious disadvantage; there simply isn’t enough colour contrast for them to differentiate the equipment from the pool. This problem is amplified with equipment like sinkers and stickers that will sit on the bottom of the pool for our students to find or reach down and collect.
With the cost of prescription goggles sometimes reaching into the 100s there is no guarantee that our swimmers who need glasses have them, this means that lack of contrast can be a problem for any swimmer that usually wears glasses, not just the swimmers that are registered as blind or partially sighted.

How we might see the equipment, how others might see the equipment.

Do you have a selection of items that can be used to perform the same task? For example, a student can practice kicking with a kickboard, or pool noodle, or personal flotation device. Giving the choice helps some swimmers manage transitions and helps with their ability to regulate emotions (especially if it is a non-preferred task). It also gives a swimmer the sense of some control which is really useful for our anxious swimmers.
Having a choice means that you can also meet a range of sensory needs, particularly tactile needs. Many of us will have encountered people who cannot bare the touch of cotton wool, or powdered chalk but there will be swimmers who face aversion to the touch of the foam that kickboards, pool noodles and other pool equipment is made from (check out our covers and see how they help with this).

SWiRLs Swim Kickboard and Noodle Cover + A Turtle Pack who we are Brand Ambassadors for

Toys! Toys are such a great resource to a swimming teacher, collecting games, transporting, blowing, balancing, the list goes on. To keep your toys inclusive just have a range that includes variety of colour (maybe not blue though!), an array of textures, different shapes – some swimmers will find balls difficult to hold but manage a small cylinder, have one or two in your kit that make noise (so swimmers that cannot see can join in the finding fun too). If you’re smart with your choice of pool toys they can double up as sensory aids.