Swim Baby Swim Toddler Swimming App - Review

'Wouldn't it be nice to have a swimming teacher in your pocket?'

When we were invited to trial Swim Baby Swim swimming lessons we were also given the chance to try the new swimming app that Anne Hawley has devised. We are trialing the toddler swimming app and we're using it alongside the lessons that Isla is taking.

The app has 6 detailed tutorials, that guide you step by step from bath time to babies first swim. There are lots of hints and tips and some lovely images of babies swimming and children having fun in the water. The 6 tutorials cover bath time, breath holding, holding on and letting go of the pool edge, rotating in/ under the water, jumping in and finally the first swim.

The bath is the first focus of the app as of course this is the place that babies really experience water on a regular basis. Hair washing is a great time to get baby used to the water and having water over their faces. Isla loves the water and so naturally loves bath time, she has to be really grumpy to not want to get in the bath. She has never complied when we've asked her to tip her head back when we've washed her hair but this turns to out to have worked in our favour now as it means that she is so used to having the water flooding down her face and it doesn't faze her. Since we have been having the lessons and started using the app she has also taken to trying to chuck a beaker of water over her own head, so her confidence is already increasing after only a couple of weeks!

Anne discourages the use of buoyancy aids in the pool and so there is another section on these and if you're already using them tips on how to get rid of them from your pool routine. As we've never used them, this isn't a problem for us, but most parents use them at some point or other so this is a very interesting topic.

Breath holding is at the very centre of Anne's teaching and so the 2nd tutorial explains how important this is and the techniques that can be used to get kids to do it. Includes showing your toddler how to blow bubbles in the water, that they should keep their eyes open under the water and getting them to imitate you putting your face in the water. So far Isla has had fun watching us blow bubbles in the water and has tried to imitate. We still have to try pop ups whereby you put your face in the water and then encourage your little one to do the same.

We're still working our way through the app and we're using it to supplement the lessons that Isla is still taking with Swim Baby Swim. She's at an age whereby she will sometimes do what we ask but mostly will try to do what she wants to do, so when we're in the pool and we're teaching her to hold on to the side or letting her work out how to climb out of the pool on her own it can result in her doing her own thing like climbing out and trying to run off! I think as she gets older and her understanding improves we'll be able to be a lot more disciplined when using this app.

All in all I think that this app helps to give parents confidence around their little ones in the pool and gives the little one a confidence in their own ability - especially if mummy and daddy are ready with a big round of applause for every achievement!

The Swim Baby Swim iPhone app costs £2.99 and can be downloaded from iTunes.
In order to trial this iPhone app we were given it to download of free of charge.

Swim Baby Swim...Summary review

Sunday was Isla's last lesson with Anne and we had high hopes for it to be brilliant, as you usually do when you've been looking forward to something all week. I can say that this lesson was a 'good' lesson - if anything these lessons have taught me that Isla will dictate how the lesson goes and this week she did well, but because I was on a high about how good she was last week I thought it was going to be the same again. In her defence she has a cough and about 8 BIG teeth cutting through, so I'm not going to quibble if she's a bit clingy in the pool one week. Anne as usual was her calm, patient self which helps a lot when Isla's not playing ball!

We did some practicing at jumping in the pool and that went fairly well as she could see the older children doing it and she likes the splashing! We used the float again and also some wind up toys that we put in the water just out of reach to encourage her to reach out with her arms. We reinforced on her the need to kick her legs, regularly uttering 'Kick, kick, kick, kick!'. She did a couple of bits with her face under the water but she was quite clingy in the pool and had a cough, so think that she wasn't quite sure this week. Anne was so pleased with her though and says that she will be a great little swimmer - and that's good enough for me!

And so I come to the end of my review posts for Isla's lessons with Swim Baby Swim UK, it may be my last review but it's not the end of the road for Isla and her lessons with Anne, we've decided that she has really achieved over the past 6 weeks and we've booked up for a further 6! All in all we've had some brilliant family time, we've immersed Isla in a hobby that we hope she will learn and improve at. I feel it is so important to learn to swim. It is a life saving skill and in time we hope to have plenty of holidays to my parents house abroad where a large communal pool won't pose a hazard for our family, it will be place of fun. I myself was taken to regular swimming lessons when I was child by my dad and I remember it fondly. I want Isla to experience the same. Also from talking to Anne I've realised that it really is the earlier the better when it comes to starting babies swimming lessons, as babies are born with the ability to swim. So when baby boy comes along we will definitely be getting him used to the water just like his big sister.

I'd like to say thank you to Anne for the opportunity and we look forward to continuing with Isla's lessons for the foreseeable future.

This is a sponsored post, we received a course of 6 swimming lessons. Opinions expressed are my own and are completely honest.

Swim Baby Swim UK - Review

So we're nearly at the end of Isla's swimming lessons with Swim Baby Swim UK and it's been brilliant, this week was so enjoyable, it was such a great start to a Sunday. We're all really enjoying the lessons and may need to keep them up - still to decide on this.

I was really looking forward to this lesson as last weeks hadn't been the best due to me feeling a bit tired due to pregnancy and Isla really missing me being present with her and my OH in the pool. She wanted to get out and be with me and so it cut short the lesson. I wanted this Sunday to go really well and I couldn't have hoped for it to be any better!

As usual there was no stopping her from trotting round the pool to the steps, she just loves the water. Once in we went up and down holding the float a couple of times and she was really kicking her legs, like more than she's ever done before and I kept saying 'kick, kick, kick' and she was really going for it with lots of smiles.

She also learnt to get out of the pool on her own by climbing out from the side. This a is bit tricky from the point of view of her age and how she quite often doesn't listen to what we're telling her, because once out she wants to run around, but we managed to get her back to the edge and encouraged her to plop back into the water with a big splash! She's getting so comfortable with having her face under the water now. We had a couple of goes of putting her under the surface and then encouraging her without help to swim between me and Daddy. I have to be so brave to do it as it's easy to freak out a bit and grab her but her big blue eyes are open and you can see that she's holding her breath until she surfaces. She looks unsure when she comes up but she gets so much praise when she does that she is fine. Anne's presence by our side is so reassuring and she's so encouraging.

We did 'piggy back' rides up and down the pool and she now holds on to us tightly without help while we swim underneath her. She loves this and says 'giddy up, giddy up!'.

I always encourage her to look at the other children as they are all slightly older and they are all jumping in and doing bits of swimming on their own and given that children love to imitate other children, it's good for her to see what they are all doing.

The best bit of the whole lesson for Isla was when she got given a badge at the end of the lesson, she loved that, it was such a nice touch. We're so pleased with her progress that we're considering continuing with Swim Baby Swim lessons. It's the last lesson next week, so here's hoping it's as brilliant as all those that have come before it.

We're also going to be testing the Swim Baby Swim Swimming app on the iPhone, where we can practice things we've learnt in the lessons and follow the advice in the tutorials in the app.

As per previous 'Swim Baby Swim' posts, I have to add that this course of 6 lessons has been provided to Isla without charge.

Swim Baby Swim UK - Review

At the weekend we had our 2nd swimming lesson with Anne from Swim Baby Swim and it was brilliant! We came away on a real high and in fact it was the beginning of a really lovely Sunday spent with family and friends!

This week the Hubbie got in the pool with us and joined in which was great as Isla really is in this 'Daddy's girl' phase at the moment! We'd been saying to her all morning that we were going swimming and she knows what that means and once through the changing room doors there's no stopping her getting into the pool.

Firstly the kids were given dive sticks that they were to drop to the bottom of the pool to encourage them to look down into the water. At first it was quite hard to get Isla to drop it but once she did and saw that it meant Daddy had to go under the water to retrieve it she was happy to do it and more importantly she was looking down into the water watching the dive stick sink to the bottom and watching Daddy fetch it.

We also went up and down the pool holding Isla, encouraging her to 'kick, kick, kick!', which she did. This week it was Daddy's turn to swim the length of the pool with Isla holding onto his back, and again she thoroughly enjoyed it.

The best part about the whole lesson though was that she went under the water on 2 or 3 occasions and it didn't phase her. The best one for us being when Anne 'swam' her towards the side with her head just under the surface. Once she reached me at the side and came above the water we clapped her and although she looked a little bit uncertain once she saw the clapping and praise she was getting she started to clap herself. The fact that Anne did this really took the heat off us, because as parents it is really hard to not be fearful and Isla wouldn't have felt any panicky vibes from her. Anne is so calm and patient and that transmits to the children.

The kids in the lesson who are more practiced with their swimming all really trust Anne, so when she's asking them to take a hand off the side of the pool and come to her they know they won't come to any harm, likewise when they jump in the pool from the side. They are confident in the pool. The parents also learn to get their children to focus on them.

The principle with these lessons is that there is no need to use buoyancy aids as these really hamper the natural ability that children possess. They keep the body in un upright position which isn't helpful when eventually the child has to learn to swim in a horizontal position. Anne's lessons teach the importance of breath holding and floating.

For more details on Anne Hawley and Swim Baby Swim, go to:
http://www.annehawley.co.uk/index.html

Isla and I are taking part in the lessons as a trial and they have been provided free of charge for the purposes of the review.

Swim Baby Swim UK - Review

Recently I was lucky enough to be asked if Isla and I would like to take a swimming course with Anne Hawley of Swim Baby Swim. Well, I jumped at the chance because Isla really is a little water baby. She absolutely loves the pool and I knew that this was an opportunity too good to miss!

I will be reviewing the course as it goes on over 6 weeks and I'm so pleased to say that lesson 1 went brilliantly!

Anne Hawley is widely recognised as the pioneer and expert of infant swimming and has been in the profession since 1974. Her reputation and lifelong commitment to safely swimming infants has resulted in her distinct, innovative and unique method of swimming babies being copied all over the world.

Anne teaches at locations across London, Surrey and West Sussex. Our lesson took place in Chessington, Surrey which was the most convenient for us and the pool was within a hotel health club, so was really clean, with good facilities and quite a calm setting. The lessons are 30 minutes in length.

We got in the car on Sunday morning, slightly bleary eyed but looking forward to our new weekend activity. Once we were changed and in our cossies, we met Anne and started the lesson. We were in a small group with 3 other children. The exercises we did help to build confidence in the water and ultimately independence.

Isla had fun with the floats, body surfing up and down the pool. I also swam the length of the pool with Anne holding Isla on my back, which I think she found amusing, like I was her own personal dolphin. The kids were also encouraged to grip hold of the side on their own. Isla proved that she doesn't mind getting water all over her face, when it was sprinkled over her and finally the most nail biting part from my point of view was when she was submerged. It was Mummy that needed to be brave on that occasion. Anne talked us through what we were going to do. I was to lift Isla up in the air twice, smiling at her the whole time and then on the third lift bring her down just under the surface of the water. I was to then slowly bring her back out of the water. I did exactly as I was told until the part when I had to bring Isla back out of the water and I did what Anne said most parents do the first time they do the exercise, which was panic slightly and bring her out quick! She made a fuss for about 10 seconds and then as soon as she saw a toy in the water was completely fine again. I'm resolved that Mummy will do better next time.

Isla absolutely loved every minute of the lesson and so did I. We hadn't realised that Hubbie could join us in the pool too, so this Sunday he will be bringing his trunks and sharing in the experience. I'm a firm believer that learning to swim is imperative in childhood and from my conversation with Anne, if children are taught to swim from birth they can even be swimming at least 5 metres independently before their 1st birthday! Imagine that? A baby could be swimming before taking their first steps. My Dad took me for swimming lessons when I was a little girl and our plan is to do the same for our little ones.

I'll keep you updated on how our lessons go, I left the pool on Sunday feeling like we'd had a really great bonding session and couldn't wait to get to Isla's Nanny and Granddad's to tell them all about it. To be continued...

For more details on Anne Hawley and Swim Baby Swim, go to:
http://swimbabyswim.info/

Isla and I are taking part in the lessons as a trial and they have been provided free of charge for the purposes of the review.