The best reason to consider year round swimming is because your child told you they wanted to. Another good reason is that your child says they want to get better and it is clear they enjoy the sport of swimming. Probably a terrible reason is because you want your child to be the next Michael Phelps or Natalie Coughlin.

My children saw how good some of the other swimmers were and they wanted to be that good too. They liked swimming, both practice and racing. So we agreed to try year round swimming. So if you make the decision to try a year round program – how do you choose a team?

Year round swim programs vary tremendously. There are very good teams and even some terrible teams. Some teams are similarly good overall, but will be better fits for different children depending on their personality and goals.

Location of the team and pool is typically important. If you choose a team far away and very inconvenient you may miss many practices and reduce the benefit. So convenience is an important and practical issue. If you know other families at a clubm then car pooling may be possible to reduce the driving required.

For kids making the transition from summer league to year round swimming I suggest that quality coaching is the single most important factor. And the most important part of coaching for new year round swimmers is stroke development. The priority should not be on swimming yardage or hours per week. The best programs for new year rounder swimmers focus on teaching and practicing correct swimming strokes. A correct, efficient stroke is the easiest way to swim fast.

Don’t believe what a swim team’s website says. Most will say something about a positive attitude and how they emphasize stroke skills. But you may find that a team really doesn’t do anything their website says they will do.

Go to a practice or two and watch. Go on a Monday or Wednesday when attendance at practice is heaviest. Watch the practice that includes less experienced swimmers. Introduce yourself to the coaches and tell them why you are there. Tell them you don’t want to interrupt practice – you just want to see how their workouts go. Look for solid use of drills to teach skills. Watch a few kids with terrible strokes and see if they get corrected. Drills that are unexplained often are ignored.

Look also at how the team runs practice. A chaotic practice where kids play instead of swim might be a sign of poor control. The practice however should not be so intense the children are intimidated and afraid to ask their coaches a question. A great coaching staff makes it fun, yet teaches the kids to follow leadership and work for improvement. You should have confidence that your child will be welcomed and receive a fair share of the coaches' attention.