At Barron, 

Each of our parent and tot classes is designed specifically to get the most out of your 30 minute lesson. We not only focus on water safety, but our curriculum has many developmental advantages as well. From 4 months – 3 yrs old, your child is growing in not only their confidence and safety in the water, but they also are improving their motor skills as well as promoting their socialization skills and emotional well-being. 

Each class begins with a welcome song and water acclimation. Whether you are getting into the water with your baby for the first time, or almost graduating into the independent program, we believe that getting acclimated to the water is one of the most important steps to becoming a confident swimmer. Singing songs, splashing, and playing with rain buckets eases your child and prepares them for more difficult skills to come in the lesson, like submersions and back floating. We always begin each lesson with a welcome song to create a fun and positive environment before we introduce them to any of the water activities. Once they are comfortable from singing and splashing we will then add our watering cans to ease them into getting their eyes and ears wet. When you and your child can ease into the water through play, this makes the more challenging skills much less intimidating. The goal of this first portion of our classes is to overcome the natural instinct to fear the water, and instead to develop trust and relaxation.  

Our submersion portion of the class continues to build water confidence and also enhances their lung capacity and respiratory control. Babies learn to hold their breath by instinct and through gentle encouragement, and it is important we never make them fear going under the water.  When our parents can calmly provide the cues we teach before each submersion, there is no doubt your child will soon learn to go under the water with ease. As you become comfortable, you will be more confident to increase the depth of your submersion, or even let them go on their own. This is not something that happens over-night. This skill takes time, patience, and a lot of trust between you and your child, so do not lose hope. Each child learns at a different pace, so continue to encourage them with each and every rep and they will soon be going under with ease and excitement. 

As your child becomes more confident with submersions, they will also become more confident with their rollovers and safety circles, due to being more familiar with being under the water and knowing how to respond appropriately if an emergency were to occur. 

One of the toughest skills for both babies and their parents to achieve with their child is back floating. This skill is incredibly difficult and takes a lot of patience and repetition, but is well worth the time and effort in the long run. Achieving buoyancy is a huge milestone to be celebrated. It instills a sense of weightlessness and encourages babies to trust in their ability to balance and stay afloat. Take your time, be gentle, and know that each second they are in a back float position should be rewarded. To achieve this skill, it is important to teach them through play and song. Let them hold on to your hand, hold a toy, and sing songs to motivate and distract them during this difficult skill. They are learning to trust you, trust the water, and also their surroundings. It will take time and dedication, but the outcome is worth it! 

Your child is learning and developing different motor skills through each guided activity. Blast offs, and kicking and reaching allows them to learn how to kick their legs and propel themselves through the water. During these activities they are working on and developing better coordination and laying the foundation for essential motor skills and muscle development. 

At the end of all of our classes, we provide a time for you and your child to work on each of these specific activities in your own time through play. It is important your child sees each of these skills as a fun way to bond with you and build trust. Making each activity fun and exciting allows them to become more confident and build their relationship with you, the instructor, and with others in the class. Finally, we end each class by singing “Wheels on the Bus.” This allows your child to  have a chance to end their class in a fun and exciting way and also gives them something to look forward to for their next class by building even more confidence.

No matter what level of skill or confidence your child has while being in the water,  our lessons provide a unique opportunity for social interaction and bonding, all while learning how to be safe in and around all bodies of water. Each skill and activity within our Parent & Tot Program has been designed to prepare your child for what they need to know for our independent program starting at 3 yrs old. When you dedicate time to your child in the water, there is a much smoother transition into the independent program where your child will pick up the newer and more difficult skills with ease and more confidence to try them. Many times, our students that come from our Parent & Tot Program level up and receive skills much sooner because of the confidence and trust they already have with the water and their instructor. By practicing consistency, patience, your child will reap the benefits of all of your hard work and dedication that has laid the foundation to becoming a stronger and safer swimmer.