Emler Swim School (northwest Austin)
May 22, 2009 by Julia
Filed under Austin (northwest), Austin Metro, classes, reviews
After attending swimming lessons with my oldest child for the past three years and observing the various reactions of young children to swimming, what seems to be the key factor for success is the child’s comfort with the swim instructors and environment. Emler swim school’s strength is teaching the beginning swimmer, especially the younger ones. The best way to find out if this school is right for your child is to visit the facility and take advantage of the free trial lesson. I would recommend doing a trial lesson during off-seasons or ask for a quieter time of the day because during the summer season, there are so many children that sometimes that alone may intimidate an already nervous child.
Ths indoor pool facility is small, about the size of an indoor pool at a hotel. It is narrow, and the pool is partitioned into five zones. Classes occur simultaneously though class start times stagger about 15 minutes apart. At one end of the pool, the parent and baby classes take place. The instructor begins with the group, and through repetition and Pavlovian conditioning via cue words and song, babies learn to kick, back float, hold their breath as they go underwater (at their comfort level and pace). When the swim instructor works one-on-one with parent and baby, the other class participants are at individual stations. I do have to say that I became a bit bored with the repetition after a while, but I managed feigned enthusiasm as I watched my then 11 month old become a confidant swimmer (no arms, just smooth kicking) by the time she was 18 months old.
At age two and with physical readiness, children transition into classes (4:1 ratio) without the parent, and that can be rough for the swimmers who participated in the parent and baby class, but I will give the teachers here much credit in helping to transition the child with the separation anxiety. Often in the beginning of these classes, there are lots of tears and children running to the window where the parents sit in a waiting room with glass panels to see the pool. The pool deck manager or an extra teacher often will jump into the water and help ease the children through this transition.
What I like most about this swim school is the personal attention that my child has received from the first day that we stepped foot into the school. The teachers know what she accomplished the previous week, and when we have missed classes due to medical reasons, we were able to schedule makeup lessons in spite of a general “no makeup” policy. The emphasis is always on safety first, fun second, and technique last. When I say that technique is last, I mean that a 2 year old is not expected to swim the free style with total technique, especially the arm strokes because they lack the physical strength so instead the teachers work on kicking (and only kicking). Once the child has mastered kicking, they work on a second technique, to take a breath mid-swim.
The pool water is heated to bath water temperature. It is chlorinated and has a UV purification system as well. Babies who are not potty trained must wear two reusable diapers.
Had I started my child at an older age where she might not like that she is in the pool with babies, I may consider a different swim school that is geared more for the older child. Emler is definitely terrific for the little kids. The only disadvantage of this swim school is the price compared to the YMCA, but there is no comparison for swim instruction. I would love to get a dollar for every time that I have heard a parent exclaim in the waiting area that her child was terrified of going underwater during the lessons at the Y but is doing great here.
I have heard terrific things about Tom’s Dive Shop and Nitro Swimming, both of which are comparable to Emler, but again, the best thing to do in selecting a swim school is to choose one based on the comfort of your child. I have met parents who have left for Nitro, and I have seen some of these parents come back to Emler after leaving for Nitro, all with the same reason that their child was more successful in one program over the other.
Emler Swim School Austin
10700 Anderson Mill Road, Suite #207
Austin, TX 78750
(512) 342-SWIM (7946)
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Our boys have been swimming at Emler for almost two years now! We started with our four year old at the time, who is now almost 7 and swimming with the neighborhood swim team. The teachers at Emler are great, they work at the pace of the child and keep it fun and friendly, not scary and class sizes are small (often you can find a two child class…can’t beat that!). We felt like with all the activities available to our children this one was so important because at the end of the day they are learning life saving skills that are so important (both sets of grandparents have pools in their back yards). Definitely go try a free class!!