SWIMMING LESSONS FOR 18 MONTH TO 4 YEAR OLDS
Our lessons for toddlers age 18 months to 4 years are a natural progression from baby swimming and carefully designed to balance technique, safety skills, floating, games and songs with an emphasis on having fun!
THE PATH TO INDEPENDENT SWIMMING
Our Turtle Tots toddler lessons are a great way to teach your child to swim and will develop your toddler’s water confidence and stroke development, helping them progress to independent swimming. We consolidate the fundamental skills your child has already learnt and introduce new skills too. You’ll see your child’s strength and confidence increasing, as they become more independent.
Play is an essential part of early development and we use songs and games in the lessons, with the emphasis on learning though having fun. Lessons improve balance and co-ordination. They also focus on promoting water confidence and early stroke practices, helping them to progress towards independent swimming. By this time, most children are happily self-submerging multiple times within each lesson and this remains under their control.
During this phase there is a stronger focus on developing aquatic breathing techniques so that younger toddlers learn to exhale as they swim and then surface to breathe. Water safety is of course key to our lessons and we build your child’s ability to assess and make judgements about risk – they will also further develop their knowledge of water safety techniques, enabling them to be as safe as possible around water. Our lessons for younger toddlers are fun-packed and energetic for both toddler and parent! We incorporate themed lessons into our programme to keep lessons feeling fresh and exciting.
THE BENEFITS OF SWIMMING
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Why teach my toddler to swim?
The Turtle Tots philosophy is to ensure safety and water confidence, encouraging parents to fully utilise the benefits and enjoyment that can have swimming with their children – whether that is at our lessons, on holiday or trips to the pool. We also provide a great social environment for parents and toddlers, giving them the opportunity to meet other families and children, forging friendships for life.
When will my child learn to swim on their own?
The age a child learns to swim independently depends on many factors including ability, confidence, and regularity of swimming.
Introducing children to Turtle Tots from an early age, and continue regular lessons, means that by the age of 3 and a half many children will be swimming short distances independently.
Do lessons include submersions
Swimming underwater is not the main focus of Turtle Tots swimming lessons. Our award-winning swim programme does include natural submersions once your little one is ready. This will be different for every child and our teachers are fully trained to understand when this will be. However, most of our activities take place above the water, with lots of fun and games.
LATEST NEWS
READY TO START SWIMMING?
We have swimming lessons for babies, toddlers, 4 and 5 year olds available across the whole of Ireland and the UK, and our world-class swimming teachers are eagerly waiting to welcome you and your little one into a lovely warm pool. If you’re ready to kick-start your child’s journey towards water confidence, find a lesson near you today.