Question 1

Why start baby swimming?

Accepted Answer

1. Children develop aquaphobia from 6 months up. Have you tried making a toddler do something which they are scared of? It is going to be a hard battle to win. This can potentially make swimming an unpleasurable experience for both parent and child.
   1. For example, a baby can be submerged in about 3 – 4 lessons whereas a 2 year old who has never done baby swimming before may take 8 – 10 lessons or more.
2. It is easier to teach a baby to tolerate water in the ears and on the face vs. a toddler. Water in the face, on the eyes and ears is a natural part of swimming. Parents often have major challenges convincing older toddlers to swim if they haven’t been taught to tolerate this earlier.
3. Proper kicking technique is reinforced in baby swimming programmes. This ensures that when your little one is ready for learn-to-swim programmes that they naturally take to correct stroke development and incorrect techniques aren’t as likely to arise. They will thus progress into formal swimming A LOT faster vs. a child who hasn’t done baby swimming before.
4. The main reason us South Africans are really concerned about baby swimming: Water safety*. Your baby and toddler needs to be water aware. As per the latest scientific research pertaining to drowning prevention, we recommend multiple barriers to prevent drowning. One such barrier is an ability of your child to swim or perform swim safety skills such as rolling over & floating on their back, the ability to turn around & catch the side of the pool if they had to fall in etc. 
5. As baby progresses in swimming they will have an increase in self-competence as they are successfully achieving various skills with repetition. This will foster independence, self-confidence and conversely cognitive development.
6. Due to the multi-planar resistance offered by water, baby swimming strengthens your little one manifesting in early acquisition of gross motor skills.
7. Children usually sleep and eat better on swimming days due to the additional energy expenditure and the appetite being stimulated.
8. "One of the best gifts you can give your little one is to teach him or her how to safely enjoy the pleasures of swimming and water play. It's a gift your child will keep for life and that you will enjoy giving" (Katz 1995)

Question 2

What is the difference between Baby Swim Gym & the conventional programme?

Accepted Answer

Baby Swim Gym™ is an one-on-one instructor-led baby swimming programme. This means your sweet pea will be in a customized baby swimming pod with a qualified instructor. All the while you can observe her/him learning and practicing swimmming, and water safety skills at arms length.
 
The skills learnt are the same as a conventional baby swimming programmes, however, the environment is a lot more controlled from a hygienic point of view minimizing the risk of catching a lingering virus. This is especially important for younger babys whos immune systems are still very immature.
 
Moms often do not want to get in the water themselves but they would like their munchkins to still gain the benefits of starting baby swimming early. Often only grannies or nannies can bring babies along for swimming. This set-up is perfect in these cases as the caregiver does not have to enter the water. We do all the 'hard work' for you.
 
Our programme is more intensive because it is on an one-on-one basis. This means your baby gets the maximum out of each session. Attention is not split between 4 - 6 babies (or more) which is a typical practice in baby swimming classes.

Question 3

What is your philosophy with regards to baby swimming?

Accepted Answer

We believe in a nurturing, loving approach. Babies are natural swimmers and the philosophy is that if a happy and secure environment is created, learning to swim is accomplished more quickly and easily. Skills will be introduced gradually, and never be forced on crying babies.

Question 4

What ages do you cater for?

Accepted Answer

Baby Swimming is commenced from 6 months onwards, if you wanted to start earlier, please discuss this with us first. The maximum age we can facilitate is 2 years as this is the point where the little one's tyically commence with formal learn-to-swim programmes. Our current Swim Gym members can continue up until 30 months BUT if we notice that the infrastructure is limiting improvements, we will graduate existing members before then. 
 
If your toddler is between 24 - 30 months and has an extreme fear of water or has never done any form of baby swimming before, we can do a few sessions to increase their water confidence with the goal to ease the transition into the big pool.

Question 5

Do you offer sessions on weekends?

Accepted Answer

Baby Swim Gym sessions can be booked on Sundays 09:00 - 14:00. At this stage only baby spa sessions occur on Saturdays.
 
Please however be aware that our 'reception' operating hours are Tuesday - Saturday and enquiries made on Sundays & Mondays will be attended to during the following working day.

Question 6

What does it cost?

Accepted Answer

Download our full Pricelist by Clicking Here (https://www.babybubble.co.za/_files/ugd/d692bf_b44002216acb4e6ba522ba9b11ec508b.pdf)

Question 7

How do I prepare for our first visit?

Accepted Answer

Preparatory Instructions will be sent via WhatsApp upon booking confirmation.
We will supply you with value-added swim diapers and towels. You only need to bring along your little ones preferable costume (if you don't have a costume, we also have these on sale).

Question 8

What can I expect during our session?

Accepted Answer

Splashing, singing, kicking, smiling and various activities aimed at refining the following 8 basic swimming & water safety skills:
1. Stomach Position
2. Back Position
3. Kicking
4. Arm Pulling
5. Submerging
6. Swimming
7. Rolling Over
8. Breath Control

Question 9

How long does each session last?

Accepted Answer

Baby Swim Gym™ sessions are 20 intensive minutes. 
You will need to arrive early to dress/wake/prepare your little swimmer. Pool entry will strictly be at 20-minute intervals.

Question 10

Can I bring a guest?

Accepted Answer

We can accomodate no more than 1 additional guest per session.

Question 11

How often should we attend?

Accepted Answer

Baby Swimming consists of a collective set of skills which can only be learnt through regular participation. We recommend at least once a week. The Baby Swim Gym™ Membership offers competitive rates to achieve this. 
However, given how busy parents lives are, this might not suit your schedule. For this reason we have single session options which can be booked at your leisure and we have a bundled option too. Please refer to 'What does it cost' for more information in this regard.

Question 12

What happens if we arrive late?

Accepted Answer

We are aware that things do happen and we do understand that you may arrive late for a swimming lesson. You are absolutely allowed to attend the balance of your lesson however we cannot make-up for time lost seeing that it will have a knock-on effect and delay the little swimmers in the next lesson. 
We therefore recommend that you block out sufficient time in preparation for swimming and plan to arrive 15minutes in advance to allow ample time for changing and feeds if need be prior to the swimming lesson.

Question 13

What is the cancellation policy?

Accepted Answer

For Single Sessions & Starter Packs:
 
Cancellation before 24 hours = full refund provided minus 10% administration fee OR an alternative date can be requested.
 
If notice is given within 12 hours of the session - we will attempt finding a make-up session - this cannot be guaranteed & depends on cancellations - no refunds.
 
Notice given less than 12 hours before session will strictly be forfeited.
 
If a valid doctors certificate is provided a makeup session will be arranged at a suitable time.
 
For Swim Gym Membership:
 
Please refer to Membership Ts & Cs sent upon enquiring about it.