HOW ARE SURVIVAL SWIMMING LESSONS DIFFERENT FROM OTHER SWIMMING PROGRAMS?
My primary focus is to teach your child to become a productive swimmer and floater in any water depth. The goal of these lessons is for your child to become an "aquatic problem solver" so that she can use her new skills in many different aquatic settings and situations if needed. Although NO ONE is ever “drown proof,” completing my program will significantly increase your child's chance of surviving an aquatic accident, even when fully clothed! I hope to help your child build a strong foundation for a lifelong love of the water.
WHAT WILL MY CHILD BE ABLE TO LEARN? WILL HE/SHE ACTUALLY LEARN TO SWIM?
YES! If your child is walking, he/she will learn to swim, not in the way that Michael Phelps does but in a way that will make most people say, “Wow, that kid is a fish!” Children older than one year old (who are walking well) are taught to swim with their faces in the water and, when they sense the need for air, to roll back onto their backs to float. After resting and breathing, they will roll over and continue swimming to the nearest safety point. A child can perform this swim-float-swim sequence to reach safety in a survival situation. Children can also achieve this sequence in their clothes. If a child does not see a way out of her predicament, she will roll over onto her back and maintain a back float position. This buys the parent time in the event of an accident. This same sequence is most often used for fun at the pool. The confidence and self-esteem of these young swimmers are truly amazing! Teaching your 1-3-year-old the swim-float-swim sequence will take approximately 6 weeks of 10-minute private lessons, 4 days per week. Typically this takes 4 weeks for ages 4-6 years old.
If your child is not yet walking (usually 6-12 months old), she will learn the basic survival skill of rollback-to-float. Teaching this skill takes about 4 weeks of private lessons, 10 minutes/day, 4 days/week. The rollback-to-float is mostly for emergency management in the event they get into the water alone. While it sometimes does not seem as glamorous or fun as swimming, it is indispensable for those children who spend a lot of time near a pool, pond, or lake. If your child learns to float this year, he will come back next year to master the swim-float-swim, and he will probably be better prepared (and safer) for it. Then, the real fun can begin!
HOW DO LESSONS WORK, AND WHAT’S WITH THE CLOTHES?
At Makos and Mermaids Infant Aquatics, all initial lessons are one-on-one, with only the instructor and the child in the pool, because I believe your child deserves my undivided attention. The parent or caregivers cheer on the child poolside. Until the last week of lessons, the child’s lessons will be in a swim diaper/swimsuit. When the parent and I feel confident in the child’s skills, we will add a t-shirt one day, then “summer clothes” another, and then “winter clothes” to ensure the child can complete her “aquatic problem-solving skills” fully clothed. The reason for this is that most aquatic accidents happen when a child is dressed, and while we hope this never happens, we want the child to encounter this in a controlled lesson environment first, where we can help her make necessary adjustments as needed.
Everyone is back in a swim diaper/bathing suit on the last day of lessons. I will get mom and dad in the pool for swim-float-swimmers to ensure the child will swim, rollback, and float for them.
I encourage kids who have "graduated" from their initial lessons to keep their skills and confidence growing with weekly small-group lessons. Like many other skills, swimming is best learned and retained with consistent practice.
ARE SWIMMING LESSONS FOR INFANTS AND SMALL CHILDREN SAFE?
YES! I am dedicated to safety and maintain numerous safety protocols to promote safe lessons. Your child's health and well-being are closely monitored daily. In addition, your child's medical and developmental history is a mandatory part of my registration process, all of which is held strictly confidential.
I can adjust lessons to accommodate many conditions as long as I know about them. If at any time I do not feel that I can provide safe lessons, I reserve the right to stop lessons. I also may request a physician’s note approving your child to continue participating in lessons.
Consider these additional points:
· No child is ever thrown into the pool.
· I will monitor your child for temperature, muscular fatigue, and physical and psychological well-being.
· Your child's daily routines outside of their lessons hold valuable data for me. You will receive instructions on how to communicate this information to me
WHY ARE YOUR LESSONS ONLY 10 MINUTES PER DAY?
Lessons for children up to 4 years old are 10 minutes/day, while lessons for children 4-6 years old are 20 minutes per day. The reason for the brief lessons is multi-faceted:
1. Safety: Since all lessons are one-on-one, your child will be fatigued at the end of each lesson (perhaps before, in which case his lesson may be shorter than 10 minutes on some days). Infants and young children have a more delicate physiology than adults, and we want to ensure the lessons intended to make them safer around the water are not unsafe.
2. Short attention spans: The short lesson helps me capitalize on the brief attention spans of young children and maximize their time for learning.
3. Better learning and retention of skills: Research shows that motor skills like walking, running, and swimming are best learned in short, intense periods of practice over a long period. So not only will your child learn the swim and float better initially because of the lesson format, she is more likely to retain the muscle memory long after lessons are over if she needs to use her skills again before coming back for group maintenance or refresher lessons (see below for "further lessons").
HOW DO YOU TEACH VERY YOUNG KIDS TO SWIM?
I have been trained to teach young children to swim by honoring each child's strengths and experiences. I understand the fundamentals of the behavioral sciences, child development, and sensorimotor learning regarding acquiring aquatic survival skills. I use this education to guide each child through learning to swim and float.
WHY SHOULD PARENTS ENROLL THEIR CHILDREN IN YOUR LESSONS?
Parents enroll their children in Makos and Mermaids Infant Aquatics Survival Swim Lessons because they understand their children's abilities and want to give them every opportunity to learn. They also feel it is essential to teach their children how to survive by resting and breathing should they ever find themselves alone in the water. Research shows there are better times to learn specific skills, and swimming is best learned early in life.
WHY DO YOU NOT USE PARENTS IN THE WATER DURING THE LESSONS?
I do not want the child to initially associate the water with the love, attention, and affection of the parent while in the water. Also, it takes incredible concentration and objectivity to teach a very young child how to respond to an aquatic emergency. Research shows that parents often find it too difficult to be objective to be effective teachers with their children in the water. This is even true with survival swim instructors and their own children. Even as an instructor, I took my children to another survival swim instructor for this reason! However, I get parents in 1-2 times over the session to teach them how to swim safely with their children.
WILL MY CHILD LEARN TO FEAR THE WATER?
There is an important difference between fear and apprehension because you are not yet skilled in a dangerous environment. These are not like traditional swim lessons; it is a drowning prevention program that teaches survival swimming. Your child may not happily skip to his or her lesson each day at first, but that's okay. Sometimes as a parent, you make sure your child does things for his or her safety, like receiving vaccinations and sitting in a car seat, because you know they are important. The same can be said for survival swim lessons.
FUN can be defined as when SKILL meets CHALLENGE. Once competent in their skills, many children cannot be dragged away from the pool. They are having entirely too much FUN.
When you learn about survival swim lessons, you know this is the most essential level of protection you can give your child to prevent drowning. If fences, supervision, and alarms fail, your child's skill level in the water is an additional measure of protection.
WHAT OTHER BENEFITS DOES THE MAKOS AND MERMAIDS INFANT AQUATICS EXPERIENCE PROVIDE THE CHILD WHO HAS BEEN THROUGH LESSONS?
Every child is different; however, many parents report that once their young children have mastered learning to swim, the resulting confidence in their abilities engenders a positive self-concept that is often demonstrated in other aspects of their personalities.
HOW DO CHILDREN KNOW TO HOLD THEIR BREATH?
Breath-holding skills are taught in the first lesson, as it is a prerequisite for all swimming skills. We shape breath control using highly effective positive reinforcement techniques.
WHAT ABOUT THE USE OF FLOTATION DEVICES AND LIFE JACKETS?
Flotation devices (e.g., "puddle jumpers," arm bands, etc.) give children a false sense of security and hold them in postures incompatible with swimming skills. If a child learns that he can jump in the water and go into a vertical posture, and he will be able to breathe, he is getting the wrong idea about that environment. Children who cannot swim should not be allowed to learn that playing in the water while relying on a crutch is safe. Coast Guard-approved life jackets must be worn in a boat or around the water when there is the potential for accidental submersion, but they are not a substitute for the ability to swim or for adult supervision.
HOW CAN TODDLERS LEARN TO RESPOND TO THE DANGER THAT WATER PRESENTS WHEN THEY FALL IN?
Once kids have learned to roll over and float when they need air, they don't need to perceive danger to respond safely to being underwater. They require skill, practice, and confidence to deal calmly with the situation.
WHAT FURTHER LESSONS WILL MY CHILD NEED?
I recommend returning your child for one-on-one or small-group maintenance lessons at Makos and Mermaids Infant Aquatics. Frequency depends on the child's age, growth rate, skill level, and confidence level. Maintenance lessons aim to help your child adjust his/her new body size and weight to his/her existing skill level. I will work with your child to help fine-tune his aquatic experience to build efficiency, resulting in self-confidence. This is especially important if your child cannot practice appropriate aquatic skills between seasons. Maintenance lessons are important because children change so much cognitively and physically during the first 4-5 years of life. It is vital that their aquatic skill and abilities grow with their bodies!