Swimming Teaching Cues: Printable Poolside Cue Cards

By Mark Young

You’ve demonstrated it, explained it, and demonstrated it again. Then the swimmer pushes off and does exactly what they did before. If that sounds familiar, you’re in very good company. It happens to every swimming teacher, me included, more often than I’d like to admit.

Most of the time the problem isn’t the swimmer, and it isn’t the practice. It’s the words. In a noisy pool, with water in their ears and a dozen other things to think about, a swimmer will hold on to three or four words at most. A short cue gets through. A long explanation gets lost somewhere around the second sentence.

Below are the cues I use most for water confidence and each of the four strokes. Every part of each stroke has a direct cue and a picture cue to try if the first one doesn’t land. Read them here, or grab the printable cards further down the page and take them poolside.

What makes a good swimming teaching cue?

A good cue is short enough to shout and clear enough to act on straight away. After more than 30 years of teaching, these are the things I’ve found matter most.

Keep it to three or four words. “Kick from your hips” works. “Make sure the movement is coming from the top of your leg rather than your knee” doesn’t, at least not mid-length.

Tell them what to do, not what to stop doing. “Don’t bend your knees” puts bent knees in their head. “Long legs” gives them something to aim for.

Give them a picture. Children especially think in pictures. “Turn your body into an arrow” will often fix a push and glide that “keep your arms together” hasn’t.

One thing at a time. If you give a swimmer three corrections, they’ll usually manage one, and it won’t be the one you wanted.

How I use cue cards on poolside

The cards aren’t a script, and they’re definitely not a checklist to work through from top to bottom. Here’s how I’d use them.

Watch your swimmers first. Pick the part of the stroke that’s holding them back most and work on that. It might be the breathing, it might be the legs. Whatever it is, start there, not wherever the card happens to start.

Give one cue and let them try it a couple of times. If it hasn’t landed, switch to the picture cue. If that still doesn’t work, change the practice, not just the volume.

I keep one card per lesson clipped to my lanyard. Printed on card and laminated, they last for ages, and they’re very handy for the days when your brain goes blank halfway through a lesson (it happens to all of us).

Water confidence cues

With nervous beginners, the words need to make the task smaller, not bigger. Let them decide when they’re ready, and keep your voice calm. For more on those first few lessons, see my guide to teaching swimming lessons to beginners.

Part	Say this	Or try this picture
Face in	"Start with just your chin"	"Blow across the water like cooling soup"
Bubbles	"Breathe out through your mouth"	"Make the water boil"
Floating	"Let the water hold you"	"Rest your head back like it's on a pillow"
Standing up	"Knees to your tummy, push your hands down"	"Sit on a chair, then stand up"
Push and glide	"Hands together, arms squeeze, push"	"Turn your body into an arrow"

Front crawl teaching cues

The most common thing I see with front crawl is a swimmer lifting their head to breathe, and their legs sinking as a result. So if you only pick one cue to start with, make it the breathing one. There’s much more on this in my guide to how to teach front crawl.

Part	Say this	Or try this picture
Body position	"Eyes on the bottom of the pool"	"Lie long and flat, like a surfboard"
Legs	"Kick from your hips"	"Long legs, floppy feet"
Arms	"Reach long, then pull back to your thigh"	"Brush your thumb past your thigh"
Breathing	"Turn your head to breathe, don't lift it"	"Keep one goggle in the water"
Timing	"Breathe as your arm comes out"	"Keep the kick going while the arms work"

Backstroke teaching cues

Backstroke problems nearly always start with the head. Lift it to look at your feet and the hips drop, then everything else gets harder. Get the head still and back, and half the battle is won. More in my guide to how to teach backstroke.

Part	Say this	Or try this picture
Body position	"Ears in the water, tummy up"	"Balance a cup on your forehead"
Legs	"Kick from your hips"	"Point your toes like a ballerina"
Arms	"Little finger goes in first"	"Arms turn like a windmill"
Breathing	"Breathe in on one arm, out on the other"	"Don't hold your breath"
Timing	"One arm goes in as the other comes out"	"Keep the arms turning, never stop"

Breaststroke teaching cues

With breaststroke, timing makes or breaks the stroke, and the bit most swimmers forget is the glide. If your swimmers are working flat out and going nowhere, “Pull, breathe, kick, glide” is the cue to reach for. My guide to how to teach breaststroke goes into the kick in much more detail.

Part	Say this	Or try this picture
Body position	"Chin on the water, eyes forward"	"Stretch out like an arrow"
Legs	"Heels up, feet out, kick round and together"	"Up, out, round, snap"
Arms	"Small circles in front of your shoulders"	"Keep your hands where you can see them"
Breathing	"Breathe in as your arms finish"	"Blow your hands forward"
Timing	"Pull, breathe, kick, glide"	"Kick, squeeze, then glide"

Butterfly teaching cues

Butterfly looks like a strength stroke, but most swimmers struggle because of rhythm, not strength. A small, smooth wave and two kicks to every pull will get them much further than a big splash. More in my guide to how to teach butterfly.

Part	Say this	Or try this picture
Body position	"Lead with the top of your head"	"Move like a dolphin"
Legs	"Legs together, kick from your hips"	"Speed up on the way down"
Arms	"Thumbs go in first, pull together"	"Draw a keyhole under your body"
Breathing	"Chin forward, not up"	"Quick breath, face straight back in"
Timing	"Two kicks to every arm pull"	"Kick your hands in, kick your hands out"

Get the printable cue cards

I’ve put all of these onto six A5 cards you can print, cut out and laminate: water confidence, the four strokes, and one more card for the moments when nothing seems to be working.

Pop your email in below and I’ll send them straight over.

When a cue just isn’t working

Sometimes you’ll try both cues and still get a blank look. That’s normal. It doesn’t mean the swimmer can’t do it, and it doesn’t mean you’re a bad teacher. It usually means the message needs a different way in.

Try fewer words, or a picture instead of a technical instruction. Give them a rhythm they can say in their head. Tell them what it should feel like. If fear is the real problem, make the task smaller and hand them some control.

I’ve written a whole page on this: what to say when a swimmer doesn’t understand.

Want more than two cues per skill?

Two cues won’t always be enough. Some swimmers need five or six different ways in before something clicks, which is exactly why I wrote The Swimming Teacher’s Phrase Book. It has over 6,500 phrases, from water confidence to all four strokes, deep water and survival skills. For every teaching moment you get direct, reassuring, picture, feel and rhythm cues, so there’s always another way to say it.

Swimming teaching cues: common questions

What is a teaching cue in swimming?
A short word or phrase that reminds a swimmer what to do, such as “Kick from your hips” or “Pull, breathe, kick, glide”. It isn’t a full explanation. It’s a reminder once they’ve seen and tried the skill.

How many cues should I give at once?
One. Two at the very most. Swimmers can only think about one thing at a time while they’re moving, and so can most adults.

Do the same cues work for children and adults?
Mostly, yes. Children usually respond better to picture cues (“Move like a dolphin”), while adults often prefer to know what it should feel like. Try both and see which one lands.

Can I print the cue cards for my swim school?
Yes. They’re free to print for your own teaching, and for teachers at your swim school. Please just don’t sell or republish them.

Why do my swimmers forget the cue by the next lesson?
That’s completely normal. Use the same cue for a few lessons so it sticks, rather than a new one every week. Repetition beats variety here.

For your next lesson, try this. Pick one stroke, one part of it and one cue. Use only that cue all lesson, and watch how many swimmers get it. If it doesn’t land, switch to the picture cue next time.

You’ll be surprised how much a few well-chosen words can do. And keep going: every teacher builds their own bank of phrases over the years, and the cards are just a head start.

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