Building a solid freestyle means you should focus on core stability and learning to send your energy forward.

Why do it:
Mastering core balance means that all your propulsive efforts will be more effective.

How to do it:
1 - Start by taking a few strokes, and then pausing in the extended / rotated position to see how far you can glide.  
2 - Do your best to stay close to the surface and try not to let the legs sink.
3 - When you feel confident if your line while paused, restart your swimming with a slow, stable stroke.
4 - Build to a high speed again, and then drive your hand and body forward to another pause... the keep repeating.

How to do it really well (the fine points):
Don't forget the kick.  During the initial stage of this progression, it's good to try to stabilize without the use of the legs.  Moving forward in the drill, as you get to the repeating phase, make sure you're driving everything forward, through the entire drill, with a steady and strong flutter kick.

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Freestyle - Side Glide Swim