Aqua-Tots in Orlando (Oviedo) is part of a large franchise of swim lesson centers across the world! With locations in Arizona and beyond, Aqua-Tots provides parents and children with wonderful lessons in small groups or private instruction. There are mommy and me classes all the way up to swim teams! Check out our previous post on information about the waiting area, changing area, bathrooms and layout!
I had taught my youngest very basic swimming techniques over the period of two years. We have a community pool and grandparents also have a pool, so we were able to use that to teach them how to swim, jump in the water and get to the side of the pool. Both Baby 1 and Baby 2 were comfortable in the water, and Baby 2 had taught herself to float on her back to get to the edge of the pool as well. I will call them “survival” swimmers.
Baby 3 (4), had a bit more history with swimming. At two, he happily would jump into the pool and get wet with no issues. We tried a private swim teacher (not through Aqua-Tots) and after that experience, Baby 3 would not even step foot in a pool. He was petrified of the water and we had to encourage him to get into a splashpad. When he was 3 1/2, we bargained with him to put on a life vest, and he slowly made his way back into the water. I was able to get him to swim from about 4′ away from the edge of the pool to the edge, but he was angry, petrified and scared. He would fight me when I suggested taking off the life vest, and getting water in his eyes created a loud screaming match! I knew that I needed more help.
Starting Out at Aqua-Tots
When looking to schedule lessons at Aqua-Tots, a good place to start is the Level Finder on their site. The Level Finder will have you answer a few questions along with the child’s birthdate to give you an estimate of where your child should be placed. Scheduling a free assessment is the next step. The assessments usually take place during a group lesson, and the instructor can see if the level is the correct place for your child.
Baby 1 and Baby 2 were at Level Four Seahorses, and Baby 3 was at level three. Each level has different milestones that they child is to meet in order to progress to the next level. Children receive a card with their name and information of what they are working on.
Lessons are half hour classes, and can be group (4-5 students), Semi Private (2 students) or Private (1 student). Teachers are called “coaches”. Students can take 1 or more classes a week. Some parents opt to do the “fast track” to get the child’s skills attained faster/
The kids waiting area is a popular place to hang out, but I also bring a book for Baby 1 and sometimes our Ipads or Tablets.
Our first lesson the kids were assessed and the level that I guessed was the right one! Phew
You can see Baby 1 looking super serious at his first lesson and Baby 2 was just having a blast.
What they have been working on is-floating on their backs, fronts and working on strokes (Freestyle and Backstroke), surface diving and a few other things. At the beginning of their time at Aqua-Tots, they barely had one star each. After two months, they both are almost ready to move up to level 5. Baby 1 really wants to wait for Baby 2 to level up too. Before Aqua-Tots, Baby 2 rarely did any swimming underwater and wouldn’t do any surface dives. Now, she loves going underneath the water, pushing off the wall and getting items from the bottom of the pool. Baby 1 has been working really hard on being on his back, backstroke and doing more with surface dives as well.
As you read above, Baby 3 was our challenge. Our trial time and lesson he started out super excitedAqua Tots Baby 3
The first time was a bit of a struggle for Baby 3. We were trying different combinations of Goggles and face masks to make him feel comfortable since he didn’t want water in his eyes.
The Coaches were great at alleviating his fear, while still working on him to push past it.
I will be honest, and many of you parents may face this as well-There were a few times when Baby 3 said he didn’t want to go in the pool the first two weeks. In fact, in one of the dressing rooms, I was begging with him to just do his lesson. Luckily, Aqua-Tots staff and coaches realize that kids sometimes have fear. They have a treasure box full of lollipops at the front desk and even some chocolate milk you can buy if you need to ploy (or bribe) your child into doing the swim lesson. Let’s just say, there was one day it was full out bribery to get Baby 3 into the water. One time I even went into the pool area to tell him to get back into the pool. The staff was wonderful and helpful with this, and realize that this can happen. After that lesson, he no longer needed to be bribed and even said he was excited. It was truly a wonderful turning point. The coaches and staff gave Baby 3 Hi-Fives and lots of encouragement and played games too!
Another thing that can happen is children can have accidents in the pool. Excitement, fear or just for an unknown reason-it happens. If an accident happens in the pool, all children come out, the staff takes care of the mess and the pool is tested to see if it is clean and safe to resume. If not, the class is rescheduled for everyone in the pool. We did have that once happen while Baby 3 had a class. I’m not sure if it was Baby 3 that was offender-but it did happen. The staff is super kind about it and the admin staff will help you reschedule your class.
Baby 3 now loves going onto his back assisted, and even begs me to put him on my stomach-face up.
Baby 3 was super relaxed just one month after starting (and fearing!) being in the water without his vest on. We are still working on his comfort with his eyes in the water, but it is getting progressively better. Coach Sandra has been able to make some deals with him to “just try it”. And, the coaches have all given him tons of praise when he has done it, so he is encouraged to do it.