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Gazette & Herald, Ryedale
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Swimming book makes a splash (From Gazette & Herald)
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Yvonne Foster's new book helps teach children to swim
7:20am Thursday 7th February 2013 in News By Karen Darley
Author Yvonne Foster with her new swimming book
A RYEDALE woman who has taught generations of children to swim has written a book on the subject.
Yvonne Wood, who lives in Ampleforth, felt there was a need for a book aimed at youngsters.
She said ‘Hi...I Want to Swim’ was quite unique, as it is written for young children to read, instructing them in a fun way how to swim.
“I have taught swimming for more than 25 years and I realised that all books for teaching children to swim were aimed at adults to instruct,” she said.
“This book is different as children can read it for themselves and it is fully illustrated and laminated so that it can be taken onto the poolside.”
Yvonne said she had always loved swimming and when her own children started to learn she decided to train as a teacher.
“I love swimming and teaching children to swim as it is so rewarding,” she said.
“For the book, I wanted to do something which was like the way I teach swimming, which was fun and would be suitable for children from three years upwards.
‘Hi...I Want to Swim’ is available from St Alban’s Sport Centre in Ampleforth, where Yvonne teaches, the bookshop at Ampleforth Abbey and AmpleHamper in the village. It is also available at Claridges, the Toy Shop and Porters in Helmsley and The Summit bookshop in Kirkbymoorside and at WH Smith in York.
DYLANESQ says...
12:34am Fri 8 Feb 13
My first 'lessons' in swimming, c1951, ignored what Yvonne obviously has not. At a BOR Bad Hartzburg vacation resort for British Forces personnel I was sent to classes given by a woman who surely must have wanted to get back at us for germany losing the war, Mercilessly she would force us underwater to open our eyes (to the stinging Chlorine) and try to see how many fingers she was showing. My stepfather, another sadist, took me to the indoor swimming pool in Minden, picked me up and threw me into the deep end of the pool. I could not swim and this was done in front of everyone there. I would feign a need to go to the toilet and lock myself in the bathroom, only opening it after he pounded on the door and threatened me. I was then subjected to being tossed in the deep end and almost drowning yet again. A couple of years later,still unable to relax enough to swim, he took pur family out into the middle of the Wörthesee in Klagenfurt, Austria and , in rough water from a gathering storm, threw me out of the boat.
On our return to England, at age 10, our Hereford elementary school class was taken to the pool. Seeing how nervous I was my teacher, speaking very kindly to me, encouraged me, told me nothing would happen that I didn't want and held me up with the palm of her hand as I took my first strokes. Fifteen minutes later I earned my badge by swimming a width !! Wherever this wonderful lady is...I've never forgotten.