Swim class is a right of passage as a kid – no matter your age or how land locked your state may be, there is something about swim class that just feels right. Learning the basics to ensure fun and safe pool time is a mom win in my book, so when I was offered swim lessons for my son at SafeSplash Swim School in Parker, I jumped at the opportunity.
When we began our lessons, my son was 18-months-old and his only real exposure to the water was his nightly baths and a few times at our HOA pool last summer when he was just a little guy (and who didn’t want to stay in the water for more than a minute or two anyway). SafeSplash offers parent-tot classes for his age range, along with small class sizes, which means individual attention and learning for both the kiddos and the parents. This makes the transition into the big kid pool that much easier for everyone. We also lucked out with Miss Brenda as our teacher, who has been an swim lessons instructor at SafeSplash for more than 10 years, so we knew we were in good hands!
To say my son was overwhelmed at our first couple of swimming lessons would be an understatement.
It turns out this is completely normal with his previous limited exposure. I knew it would take some time for him to be as excited about being in the water as the other kids, who had been coming for a longer period and all of the other parents kept reassuring us that eventually it will just click on like a light bulb. Miss Brenda was great during this transitional period and focused on helping make it fun for my son so that it didn’t seem so scary… and what do you know?
As soon as we started focusing on making it something fun for him, the lightbulb clicked on and he started loving it!
Miss Brenda has been a fantastic teacher and we really look forward to going to our classes each week! She is highly trained in specifics for our age group, based on their other developmental milestones. For example, each kiddo is supposed to back float – it’s one of the last exercises each week before class is over. My son was not having it one week and she asked if he was teething? He is (always) and so we skipped the activity for that week, as the pressure of being on his back would have been so miserable for him.
All in all, the fact that in four short months we’ve gone from my kid crying when he sees his swim trunks and realizes where he’s going (weeks 1-4) to now running through the lobby when we get to class and basically jumping in by himself is incredible to me.
