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The start of something extraordinary

Paraparaumu Beach School get in the swim with Koru

Paraparaumu Beach School welcomed Swimming New Zealand staff member Sarah Gibbison and Koru the Kiwi, into their school with open arms. They showed how much they know about keeping themselves safe in, on, and around the water through interactive classroom ideas being explored.

The senior school enjoyed a session about beach safety and the effective use of equipment. Many great questions were asked including, “what should you do if your parents won’t put on their own lifejacket?”. The younger students enjoyed trying on lifejackets, and discussing water safety in the home. They also enjoyed the story book, 'Tasman The Sailor Dog', which Sarah read to them.

Sarah was absolutely blown away by the maturity of the students and the way in which they asked extremely sensible questions. “It was so fantastic to see Paraparaumu Beach School invest a lot of time and effort into their swimming programme each year. This school is an excellent example of a school that is really developing their students in every area of swimming”, Sarah said.

Swimming New Zealand would like to thank Paraparaumu Beach School for being so welcoming and showing such respect to both Koru and Sarah. We look forward to seeing you again in Term 1 when your school pool is back in action for another busy summer season.