Frequently Asked Questions

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Swim Kids lessons are designed specifically for young children. Children must be at least 6months old to participate in the full program. There is no age limit, however children must be shorter than 4ft 2in to participate in Swim Kids lessons. Kids usually reach this height around 6-7yrs old.

We know it seems weird to have a height restriction for swim lessons. We've learned over the years that one of the key components to being a confident swimmer is being comfortable with nothing under your feet. When kids can touch the bottom, they rely on dropping their feet instead of trusting their swim skills. The hotel pools where we teach are relatively shallow and the height of each coach varies. Keeping children under the 4ft 2in height limit allows for the safest, most effective swim class possible. 

Yes! And then they'll come up! We are big on building lasting relationships with the kids that we teach. A huge part of that is being honest with the kids from day 1. In order to swim, kids need to be comfortable holding their breath underwater. For that reason, we go underwater briefly on the first day of lessons. If we were to sing and dance for a week and then  go underwater, we would break the trust that had been building by not getting wet. We are gentle, kind and loving as we build strong, confident swimmers.

Absolutely! Our ultimate goal is to have kids safely swimming across the pool by themselves. This takes time as we work at the pace of each child's ability. We don't believe in splitting kids into age groups. Instead, the one-on-one coaching allows us to evaluate each child's potential and build their swim skills in a manner that makes sense for them. The process will look different for everyone, but the end goal is the same. 

We need to take a minute to define 'swim'. There are 2 types of swimming. First is safety. Safety involves understanding water. Knowing how to find air and understanding how to move through the water are key to enjoying a day at the pool or beach. With a solid foundation based on safety, families can play in the water stress free.

The second type of swimming is technical training. Technical training involves perfecting stroke patterns and kicks to master efficiency in the water. Every child we teach will move from point A to point B, however, Swim Kids coaches do not focus on proper techniques. We do not believe that kids should fail simply because their stroke doesn't 'look right' to the person teaching them. Sadly, we've met many children who think they can't swim because they failed in traditional classes multiple times. It is heart wrenching to listen to a 5yr old tell you they can't.  Not every child wants to be in the Olympics, but all children can learn to be safe.

Once kids have a solid foundation built on safety, technical training is easy. 

There are a few things that need to happen in order for kids to learn proper swimming techniques. First, they need to be able to translate verbal instructions into specific movements. Once you can explain to a child how to do an intricate task (such as doing up a zipper) that they've never done before, - without touching them - they are probably ready to learn technical swim skills.

Second, kids need to have the strength and coordination needed for the movements to be beneficial. Moving through water takes muscle and endurance. Trying to force someone to do a skill before their body is physically capable is frustrating for everyone involved.

Third, the kids need to have a desire to learn techniques. If your child insists on being the fastest kid at the pool, they might thrive with technical training. If all they want to do is go down the water slide 100 times, safety training is the better route (for now).

Yes! Most young children are not verbal learners. Swim Kids lessons are taught on a sensory-motor level. We use all our senses to build an understanding of how to move and be safe in the water. English is not a requirement for success at lessons. Many of the children we teach are non-verbal but all of them understand a smile. You'll mainly hear us say things like "You did it!" and "You're the best!", it's very rare that we give specific verbal instructions. We make every effort to show each child how special they are regardless of the language we speak.

No. The consistency of the classes is one of our secrets to success. The schedule of 10minute classes, 4 days each week is designed to mimic the natural learning style of young children. This is a tested schedule with over 15yrs of impressive swim graduates.

Indulge me for a minute while I use the example of making pasta. What would happen if you boiled pasta for 3minutes, then turned it off and came back to boil for 9mins the next day? We all know this would give undesirable results. There is a long history of consistently boiling pasta for a specific amount of time. The same is true for Swim Kids lessons.  We know it's a commitment to come to lessons every day, but we also know the results are worth the effort!

Possibly. Will they cry forever? No, definitely not.

Children react differently to new situations. Coming to swim lessons for the first time, there is a lot of new things happening all at once. It's a lot to take in for some children. Young children have limited verbal skills and will typically default to crying to express every emotion. Swim Kids coaches are trained to lovingly help children through the emotions while simultaneously teaching some amazing skills in the water. As mothers ourselves, we make every effort to comfort our students and build confidence along the way. We find that as children begin to be successful in the water, their emotions change and they are excited to come to lessons every day!

If you ever have any concerns, before, during or after lessons, we encourage you to talk with your coach. We are always ready to help and have many creative ways to bolster the kids' confidence.

Yes! We often teach multiple siblings these valuable skills. Each class is still taught individually to guarantee success for each child. When multiple children are in lessons, we schedule classes back-to-back so families only come to the pool once for lessons. 

For example: The Smith family has 3 kids. They choose 6:10pm, 6:20pm and 6:30pm for lesson times. Sarah goes first, then Jane, the Sam. The total time spent at lessons for all 3 kids is 30mins. 

Infants in bucket seats or older siblings are also welcome to be on the pool deck while watching lessons.

Yes! Ms. Holly is certified to teach children with special needs. You will need to have a conversation with her about your child's specific learning requirements and your expectations for what they are capable of learning. To schedule a time for a conversation please send Ms. Holly an email to: holly@swimkidscalgary.ca

Please be sure to choose Ms. Holly as your coach if your child is developing on an A-typical scale.

It's true that no one can guarantee 100% success. It would be great if it was all up to us, but we are working with another human being. Someone with their own thoughts and ideas. As stated previously, we make every effort to teach kids on their level according to their ability. However about 2% of the kids we teach struggle to grasp the safety skills during the 5 week full program. But we have a plan! 

When this happens, it's important to give everyone a break. This is typically a 3-6 month gap in lessons and then we try again. We find that when we do this, almost all children graduate successfully after the second attempt at lessons. There is no extra fee to families when this happens. The Swim Kids promise is to teach until your child is safe in the water. We really mean it.