WILD CHILD WATER PLAY
Learn to Swim Program

TODDLER CLASS DESCRIPTION

One adult parent or guardian must be in the water with each child at all times. Both parents are invited and encouraged to attend. All toddler classes are 45 minutes long. The classes are divided into three sections:

• 15 minutes of songs and games
• 15 minutes of skills
• 15 minutes of free play

15 Minutes of Songs and Games:

We start every class with our "Good-Morning Song". It is very important for parents to be on time so that their child can participate in the "Good-Morning Song" and have time to get adjusted to the water and group setting before any skills are taught. Starting class with songs and games makes children feel comfortable. If a parent misses the first fifteen minutes of class, we recommend that you skip the skills part of the class and just allow your child to play that day.

By age two, most children are tall enough to stand, unassisted on the tot dock. During the songs and game portion of the toddler class, we do a lot of bouncing, and playing games that encourage your toddler to explore the pool under their own locomotion. The parents job is to enourage water exploration and make sure your child is safe while they learn to move in the water. It is important not to move children up from the infant class until they are tall enough to stand comfortably on the bottom without assistance. For more information on the difference between the infant and toddler class, click below:

15 Minutes of Skills:

This part of the class is a very structured routeen set to music. The goal is to teach children basic swimming vocabulary and skills. These skills are the building blocks that allow your child to "swim" once their coordination and muscle strength are adequately developed (usually around 2 1/2 years of age). Basic Skills include:

Basic Skills include:

Blowing bubbles
The goal is to teach your child to blow bubbles (not hold their breath) when ever their face is in the water.

Humpty Dumpty (Safty Skill)
The goal is to teach your child to turn and go back to the side of the pool everytime they jump or fall into the water.

Big Arms (Crawl Stroke Arms)

Kicking (Crawl Stroke Legs)

Back Floats (Head Back Tummy Up with the parents support)

Going Under Water

A child cannot learn to swim until they are comfortable putting their head down and face in the water. Young children simply do not have the upper body strength to swim with their head out of the water. As such, it is very important to help your child become "comfortable" going under water. It is the first step in learning to swim.
For more information on going underwater...

Combined Skills (beginning to put it all together to swim front crawl)

15 Minutes of Free Play:

During this part of the class, we put out a lot of toys and let children play. This is the most important part of the class because it allows children to experiment with the skills they are learning in a fun, safe enviornment.