Three Big Reasons to Enroll Your Child in a Swim Survival Program

Learning how to swim is an important life skill that keeps everyone safe, healthy, and happy in and around the water. When considering a swim program, parents will find that after doing a quick search online, that there are many different types of swim programs to choose from. Here are three big reasons to choose the Survival Swim℠ program for your child:

1. Water Safety

Typically, there are two types of swimming lessons. One is traditional “learn-to-swim” programs, such as the “Mommy and Me” programs, that introduce children to the water without teaching them how to survive if they should fall into the water.

Swim survival programs, such as the Survival Swim℠ program, allow infants and small children to get acquainted in the water while teaching them essential survival swimming skills that can save their life in the event of an accidental plunge in the water– the roll-back-to-float method.

While both programs will teach a child to be more comfortable in the water, the Survival Swim℠ program actually empowers a child with the skills necessary to roll and float onto his or her back and take breaths until help arrives…even before they learn how to walk! Most learn-to-swim programs do not attempt to teach this skill as it takes extra time, skill, and patience.

2. Build Confident Swimmers

Once a child in the Survival Swim℠ program learns the roll-back-to-float technique, they can truly swim, stay float and conquer their fear of water. This program truly differs from a Mommy and Me program in that the child is in the water in a one-on-one environment with a certified instructor. This instructor will patiently guide the student, based on what is developmental appropriate for the child, and teach them to become truly independent and confident in the water. We believe that building confident swimmers at such a young age can lay a strong foundation for a child to build more advanced skills and strokes later down the road.

3. Learn to Swim in Weeks, Not Years

Traditional swim lessons are set up to concentrate on teaching students to feel comfortable in the water and often skip the foundation necessary to learn these essential survival skills. In addition to this, many traditional learn-to-swim programs do not offer one-on-one instruction that allows a child to receive the attention he or she needs to learn how to swim at his or her own pace.

Infants (6 – 12 months) enrolled in an Survival Swim℠ at Texas Swim Academy learn the following skills within 20 lessons:

• Hold their breath in the water
• Roll from a face-down position to a face-up back float
• Float, relax, and breathe until rescued by an adult or possibly flip over and swim to the wall
• Perform these skills fully clothed

Every student approaches swimming lessons in a different way – with their own personality, needs, and abilities. Special one-on-one instruction allows the instructor to adjust the lesson to make it more enjoyable and effective for each child. This drastically makes lessons more effective for a child ensuring that skills learned stay with them for years to come.

To learn more about the Survival Swim℠ program, please visit our program page or give us a call!