066 248 6345
info@danielindewellness.co.za
office Hours
Mon & Wed (8am - 12pm)
Tue & Thu (2pm -6pm)
Off 2nd Avenue
Florentia, Alberton
GPS: -26.26876, 28.12616
AquaTOTs
The aquatots® swim program
‘The atmosphere is happy and relaxed’
Our Program is a sing-song parent-tot group approach to teaching toddler swimming skills. Tuition is through the parent who always accompanies the child in the water. The atmosphere is happy and relaxed with on average six parent-tot pairs in the group.
The inherent potential of toddlers is encouraged and developed through songs and games in the aquatic environment in much the same way that it is encouraged and developed in their natural environment.
Toddlers are given the opportunity to master an aquatic environment simply by exposing them to it and by allowing them to play in it.
AQUATOTS® Program Divisions
Division 1 for Babies from 0-6 months
- Parents bath with their child
- Division 1, also called the Bath Routine. It is a Parent Education Course that is a “once-off session” in your own home, or at our swim school.
- In Division 1 the parents will learn how to develop their baby’s natural swimming ability from this early age in either the baby or the family bath or at our premises.
- The BATH ROUTINE will also prepare the parents and Baby for Division 2, which they will start at 6 months of age in the big pool
Division 2 for Babies from 6-12 months
- Parents are in the pool with their child
- Back floating is the easiest and most effective swimming skill infants of 6-12 months can master.
- This, however, depends on the age of which the infant start with lessons and the frequency of lessons attended. We highly recommend two lessons per week to maximise progress.
- Infants from Division 2 that go into Division 3 that have already mastered some secondary swimming skills such as buoyancy, the back float and even submersion will have an advantage and will master their swimming ability much quicker and at a much younger age than toddlers who are new to the program and only start lessons in Division 3.
Division 3 for Babies from 12-36 months
- Parents are in the pool with their child
- The age span covered in this division has the highest incidence of drowning amongst children of all ages. For this reason, the main focus in toddler swimming should be on safe behaviour in and around water. It should not be on the teaching of the actual swimming skills.
- The ultimate aim would be to get toddlers swimming as soon as possible, their safety should never be compromised during the learning process. How long it takes for toddlers to learn to swim depends on the way they are taught, their age and how much time they spend in a swim-related activity. We highly recommend two lessons per week to maximise progress.
- In Division 3, the AQUATOTS® approach takes advantage of normal behaviour patterns already acquired by toddlers on land and transform it into valuable life-saving water skills when adapted to water.
- Children love to explore these possibilities to the extent that they master them. At AQUATOTS® we use toys, songs and rhymes to motivate and teach the children these water skills.
Division 4 AQUATOTS® Club for Independent Toddlers
- Division 4 is for toddlers of all ages who can hold their own in the water.
- Focus is on retaining their newly acquired ability through practice and play. Once toddlers have mastered something as challenging as the aquatic environment, they should be left to enjoy it. There should be as little interference as possible.
- Children are often denied the chance to revel in their new sense of accomplishment.
- Often the magnitude of their sense of accomplishment is overlooked. They are pushed further to achieve beyond their ability. This can be totally demoralising. Toddlers tend to lose interest in swimming all together when this happens and parents wonder why.
- When a toddler graduates from the AQUATOTS® program, he can jump in, swim 8 meters with breathing, roll onto his back, swim 3 meters, and climb out. He can do this completely independently, comfortably and consistently.