For Christmas Grandpa Bart and Grandma Kiki got Simon swimming lessons! Goldfish Swim School specializes in kids swimming lessons that actually teach the kids to swim (swimming lessons at most other places are about games to get the kids comfortable in the water). At 2.5 Simon can join a class that is with a parent or without a parent. We signed him up for no parent classes and Friday he had his first class!
When we got there, Simon got changed into his suit and we waited in the room until they called for his class time. I walked Simon into the pool area and he sat on the yellow foam turtle, soon joined by the other two people in his class (I didn't meet them but he told me later they were Jack and Mia). I headed out to sit behind the glass wall in the waiting room and he started class!
Where they sat there is a custom step that makes the water about waist high for Simon. In addition to instructors in every lane, there were two life guards watching the pool and there were two ladies with clip boards walking around the pool who doubled as extra life guards and made sure the kids were in the right class. Simon's class was a parent free instruction and worked really well. Each kid did a back and forth lap with the instructor doing one-on-one learning while the other two waited and kicked on the edge. They each did two laps on a floaty, one lap holding the teacher's arm, a lap of dead man float (with their head on the teacher's shoulder), they scooted along the edge of the pool, practiced getting out and jumping back in and of course held their breath while dunking under water a couple times too! The instructor put goggles on them so they could see under the water while they dunked. It was great. He loved it until the last 3 minutes when he finally looked up and realized I was watching him from the other room and he started to cry (needed his mama). I think next week when Jenn or Alan takes him there will be no tears.
The last five minutes of class the parents come in and the teacher gives the parents a summary of how the kid is doing and what they learned. Simon did great holding his breath and dunking his head, he tends to bicycle kick and they will work next class on flutter kicking. I'm so excited that he is learning to swim!
When we got there, Simon got changed into his suit and we waited in the room until they called for his class time. I walked Simon into the pool area and he sat on the yellow foam turtle, soon joined by the other two people in his class (I didn't meet them but he told me later they were Jack and Mia). I headed out to sit behind the glass wall in the waiting room and he started class!
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| I paused as I walked out to take some pictures... so this was taken in the first 2 minutes of class. She is helping him extend his legs to kick. |
Details about the class and more pictures after the jump...
Where they sat there is a custom step that makes the water about waist high for Simon. In addition to instructors in every lane, there were two life guards watching the pool and there were two ladies with clip boards walking around the pool who doubled as extra life guards and made sure the kids were in the right class. Simon's class was a parent free instruction and worked really well. Each kid did a back and forth lap with the instructor doing one-on-one learning while the other two waited and kicked on the edge. They each did two laps on a floaty, one lap holding the teacher's arm, a lap of dead man float (with their head on the teacher's shoulder), they scooted along the edge of the pool, practiced getting out and jumping back in and of course held their breath while dunking under water a couple times too! The instructor put goggles on them so they could see under the water while they dunked. It was great. He loved it until the last 3 minutes when he finally looked up and realized I was watching him from the other room and he started to cry (needed his mama). I think next week when Jenn or Alan takes him there will be no tears.
The last five minutes of class the parents come in and the teacher gives the parents a summary of how the kid is doing and what they learned. Simon did great holding his breath and dunking his head, he tends to bicycle kick and they will work next class on flutter kicking. I'm so excited that he is learning to swim!
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| Simon sitting on his Yellow Turtle Pad. |
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| Focusing hard on kicking so his tongue is out. |
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| Red thing is like a dock with the blue bar as a handle. They didn't use it for this class. |
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| I'm sitting in the waiting room, watching the kids lesson. |
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| Simon doing the dead mans float resting on the teacher. |
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