Junior (Nipper) Activities

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Junior (Nipper) Activities

Junior Development Program

Surf Life Saving has a national Junior Development Program which includes lessons that are tailored to each of the Nipper age groups, ensuring the content is relevant, in line with lifesaving and surf sports most up to date training standards, and most of all exciting! The program is based on participatory evaluation and not assessed on competence; this means children must only be actively involved in each of the lessons to be eligible for the award. We believe the best way to introduce juniors to surf life saving is to prioritise fun over being ‘tested’.

Further junior resources are available on the SLSA Members Portal [external].

Age Managers

Of course Nippers cannot run without the wonderful assistance of the Clubs’ volunteer Age Managers. These are the people who are responsible for delivering the Junior Development Program to the Junior Members. Age Managers need to be 15 years or above and be a current financial member of Surf Life Saving.

To support these volunteers in their role, Surf Life Saving has developed a nationally accredited course which covers duty of care, risk management, growth and development of nippers, education and more. The course is made up of three parts:

Age Manager Online Course (or alternatively a face-to-face delivery)
On-the-beach technical session with an age manager mentor
Minimum of two (2) on-the-beach mentoring sessions with an age manager mentor

In addition it is recommended that age manager award holders take part in an annual update session prior to the start of each Nipper season. The annual update session is a club level discussion led by the club's Junior Activities Committee.

Share your work…

One of the great things about Surf Life Saving is the passion we have for our communities, and the initiatives that are developed to help address an identified need. If you or your Club has a junior activities initiative, why not share it with us, so we can share it with other Clubs in the State. Email memberservices@surflifesaving.com.au.

Further Information

There is a significant amount of research available on why it is young people play sport and what they enjoy about it. When thinking about the way you engage with your Nippers here are some points to consider:

Why do young people play sport?

Young people play sport for a number of reasons. Generally, young people play sport:

To have fun with their friends
For excitement and enjoyment
To experience challenge, achievement and personal responsibility
To improve their skills

Why do young people stop playing sport?

There are a number of factors that influence a young person’s decision to play sport and also to drop out of sport. What we do know is that young people do not enjoy sport when:

There is an overemphasis on winning by parents, coaches and others.
They don't get enough playing time
They can not play with their friends because of imposed grading systems
There is high praise for the best performers and little acknowledgement of others
They are made to feel uncomfortable
The coach is overly authoritarian

For more information visit: