A complete curriculum that takes children from novice to accomplished swimmer, providing a deep understanding and enjoyment of the water along the way.
Our unique approach to swimming tuition for juniors provides a focus not only on swimming skills but also on water safety and rescue. The programme uses a progressive level system that continually builds water confidence and water safety knowledge. Later on we also develop awareness and ability around rescue. We mix learning, practice and assessment in a fun and caring environment, gradually developing their water skills, including distance, breathing and stroke range.
Each child receives a downloadable commemorative certificate after each level, adding to their personal achievements.
A Lifelong Safety Skill
Water safety and survival skills are things we believe every child should learn. Our courses teach safety on rivers, lakes, sea and farms.
Great Exercise
Swimming is a healthy activity for children. Supervised by supportive teachers, children become more active at a pace that suits them, developing a positive attitude towards exercise.
Grows Confidence
A child may be nervous in the beginning. But their confidence and esteem soon grows. This will help them in other situations such as new school group settings.
Builds Social Skills
Your child will be learning in a fun group environment, improving their social skills outside of school as they meet others with similar interests.
Happy Children
Swimming creates endorphins, helping to burn off energy. Once a child is comfortable in the water, swimming is among the best forms of fun there is.
Cognitive Development
According to studies, swimming helps children develop their mind/body connection. This, in turn, significantly helps improve brain and emotional development.
Continuous Growth
Week on week your child will build their skill set, soon becoming a competent swimmer anywhere – holidays, pools, rivers and lakes, and maybe even the sea!
Support at Every Step
Don’t worry if your child is nervous or doesn’t have experience. Our teachers will be with them all the way, making it easy and fun.
Caring Teachers
We are not just swimming teachers. We are mums, dads, aunts and uncles. We take the caring element of our role very seriously. We want our students to enjoy learning.
A Family Swim Club
We provide courses for all the family. We get to know our swimmers really well. Our swimmers progression and enjoyment are at the heart of what we do.
Sessions are fun and supportive. We will develop your child’s knowledge, skills and safety awareness. Our teachers are patient and professional, working with your child to encourage them to learn and enjoy the process.
Teachers follow a professionally prepared programme. Groups are small with a comfortable teacher to pupil ratio.
At the pool
Each weekly session lasts 40 minutes but please allow time in your schedule for changing before and after. Our classes have drop and go policy. Groups are small and capped at between 6 and 10 places. After your 40-minute session – we require children to vacate the pool to accommodate the next group.
What does my child bring?
Swimwear, hat, goggles, towels and toiletries are all that are required.
We provide any additional swimming materials needed.
We provide you with full instruction on how to prepare before you start, so don’t worry; it’s nice and easy.
Course Breakdown
Our courses consists of 11 weekly sessions. Sometimes the 11 weeks are broken by breaks for holidays (denepnd on location you swimming in). We run 5 courses (5 terms) per calendar year to allow progression focus.
Follow on Courses
At the end of each term, swimmers will be offered priority places via email in the following term you are progressing into before bookings open to the public - These offers stay active for up to 4 days during which time you can secure your place through your user account.
Certificates
After completing a course a personalised certificate of completion for the attending swimmer can be accessed and downloaded from your swimtastic user account.
Swimtastic User Account
If you are a new customer we will ask you to set up a user account. A user account is necessary to book a course. Once created you can use it to see course attendance and progression, purchase history, certificates and more.
Attendees
When booking a new course we will collect all the details of those attending the course.
Booking more than 1 course
It’s easy book more than one course. Just go through the process and after you add a course to your cart, you’ll be asked if you’d like to book another.
Follow on Course Offers
To avail of a priority place offer in the next term you must book it through your user account within the specified time to secure your place.
The programme is all about our teachers working alongside with your child to teach them confidence and skills.
Our Junior Academy provides a progressive level curriculum which take young swimmers from beginners to advanced levels. To share our love of water we’ve designed the programme to be highly accessible and allow for easy and steady progression for children of all ability. It’s done through fun, water games, sequences of play, but it is highly structured for progression. The weekly sessions follow a structured session by session and term by term plan. These plans are managed by your teacher and designed for your child’s comfort and to progress children at a comfortable pace.
As skills build with each level of the curiculum it is important that each student has met criteria so that he or she can progress to the next course level safely. The programme skills and abilities our teachers check for at each level can be found under 'learn more’ below.
Level 1 - This is a beginner’s stage for children that are just starting lessons for the first time and for children that may be a little nervous. It is gentle but progressive and supportive. They will be introduced to water safety and hygiene, pool rules and they will begin learning practical swim basics such as water entry and exit, floating, basic movement and how to fully submerge in the water. Minimum requirement to be of school going age.
Level 2 - This level is for children that will have already had some experience in swimming pool and aren’t too nervous. They are already confident with water and can fully submerge. Concentering on learning to float unaided into a streamline position and kicking their legs to begin their movement in the water. The children will expand their knowledge in staying safe in a pool environment.
Level 3 - The swimmer is now confident in the water, they have started their aquatic breathing journey and can float in the water unaided. On completion of this level the swimmer will increase their swimming distance with more concentration on their streamline position and leg kick on their front and back. The swimmer will also begin to use their arms to move on their front and back. The swimmers water safety knowledge will increase on completion of this level.
Level 4 - The swimmer can fully submerge and is confident using their aquatic breathing in the water. The swimmer is now confident swimming on their front and back. In this level the swimmer will develop their skills on their front and back while increasing their swimming distance. The swimmer will learn the basic in breaststroke and butterfly. The swimmer will also be introduced to the two stokes used by lifeguards and begin their journey of threading water.
Level 5 - The swimmer has now been introduced to all four strokes, in this level the swimmer will increase their distance on their front and back while concentrating on their technique. The swimmer will be introduced to the full strokes of breaststroke and butterfly. The swimmers water safety skills will develop with the improvement of their lifesaving strokes and use of pool rescue equipment.
Level 6 - The swimmer has now learnt all four strokes and has been introduced to the two strokes used in lifesaving. The aim of this level is to develop the swimmer’s technique and increase the distance of the swimmer. At this level we encourage quality swimming over quantity swimming. The swimmer’s lifesaving skills continue teaching the swimmer the valuable non-contact lifeguarding skills.
Level 7 - The swimmer is now a strong and confident swimmer, their knowledge of the 4 main swimming strokes and the two lifesaving strokes is of a high level. This level the swimmer will increase their distance on all strokes concentrating on the transition of the push and glide into the four main strokes developing the overall stroke. The swimmer is becoming more confident in lifesaving and is truly on the right track on becoming a rookie lifeguard.
Level 8 - The swimmer can now swim all four main strokes to a high standard keeping a controlled pace leading the swimmer to increase their distance while most importantly maintaining the good quality of the stroke. On the completion of the level the swimmer is now a “Swimmer” and a junior lifesaver given the swimmer and option to follow the competitive swimming route or become a Rookie lifeguard.
Level 9 - This level is for children that are very comfortable and experienced in the water. The distances here get much longer and the techniques are advanced. We will bring awareness to their own ability to signal for help in difficulty. Holding correct stroke technique up to 75 metres. These kids know just about all there is to know about water safety in and out of the pool.
Level 10 - They are going further and further, 75 meters and plus with front crawl, back crawl, breaststroke, inverted breaststroke…..the list goes on. We will extend survival skills practice to calling for help in difficulty whilst fully clothed.
Level 11 - We’re sweating, it’s 100 meters and more now, and the safety and rescue skills get even better. These kids are ready to summersault!
Level 12 - Now, our kids will be able to teach the emergency services their jobs, and even get in a swim up to 150 meters to help them along the way. These children are very competent and capable swimmers and will now learn all about basic lane swimming rules. Are these little fish beginning to think about competing? Or maybe becoming a lifeguard? Or swimming teacher?
Level 13 - It is a final level in our Junior Academy Programme. Our most advanced children are indeed more advanced than many of our pro swimmers! Now we’re beginning to think about competition or advanced lane swimming, we have stop counting meters and focus is onto how many lengths we can achieve without stopping. Here is to future Olympic swimmer? Or lifeguards? Or maybe swimming teachers?
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Conducting a swimming assessment prior to starting swimming lessons is crucial for tailoring the instruction to each student's skill level and ensuring their safety. This in not mandatory but is recommend for newcomers with previous swimming experience.
An assessment is only short session - 10 to 15mins maximum and helps us determine your child’s needs, confidence in the water, and skills that need to be developed.
When booking we will ask for Personal details, relevant medical history and information on any previous swimming experience
All our courses have been professionally and especially designed by the Swimtastic team. Our courses have the approval of our affiliates; Swim Ireland, STA (UK) and Birthlight.
At Swimtastic we pride ourselves on providing swimming programmes for all ages and abilities.