I spent a long time in a hotel pool yesterday, ferrying my 3-year-old around the perimeter.
At first, he kept flailing and begging to go back to the steps; until I turned around and let him see where we were heading. He immediately started laughing and talking about the experience.
Turn around – fear. Turn around- joy.
Our students are like that. Even when they trust us as implicitly as a three-year-old trusts his parents (and they don’t, nor should they), they can get tense, apprehensive, and even belligerent if they don’t see where they’re going.
Show them the arc. Show them where you’re headed, and make sure they can see how each step will help them get there.
If they know where they’re going, they’re going to plunge forward right along with you.
Happy swimming.