Starfish Aquatics Program Details

The implementation of the Starfish program has two main components; the core competencies and the benchmarks.  These explanations are meant for students or guardians of students, so that they can understand a bit more about the program.

Core Competencies
This is a list of skills that each student needs to master in a certain level.  They build upon each other, so that skills in Red need to be learned before those in Yellow.

Benchmarks
This is the final "test", a specific skill that shows the student is able to preform all the core competencies.  These are outlined in more detail in the specific level posts.

Safety Skill Benchmark
In addition to swimming skills, each level focuses on water safety as well.  This includes life jackets, self-rescue, calling 911 and treading water.  While each level has a specific safety benchmark, these skills are part of every lesson, teaching students how to stay safe in the water and react to emergencies.

Star Babies and Star Tots
This is equivalent to the Parent/Child class in Red Cross. The parent or caregiver is in the water with the child, and the instructor is there to show the parent skills and safety techniques to work on with the child.  The color levels are the same, with similar goals to the Swim School in an age-appropriate way.

Swim School
The five levels of Swim School prepare the students to learn actual strokes.  It starts with trust and submersion and moves through various body movements and positions.

Stroke School
This is where actual competitive swim strokes are taught.  Each level takes one of the four; front crawl, backstroke, butterfly, and breast stroke.  They focus on drills meant to make each stroke more efficient for competitive swimming.

Other Programs

• Swim School for Teens and Adults
• Starfish Swim Team
• StarFun and Fitness
• Home school and After school programs
• Parties
• Camps
• Scout groups
• AngelFish - special needs students

The Switch to Starfish Aquatics

The facility I work for has decided to make the switch from Red Cross aquatics to Starfish Aquatics.  http://www.starfishaquatics.org/

There are reasons for the change, but they're all at the administrative level.  What this means on a practical level is that all the previously trained Red Cross lesson instructors have had to do "cross-over" classes to become re-certified.  I've been teaching lessons for almost 15 years, and have done the "old" Red Cross, then YMCA lessons, and then the "new" Red Cross, and now Starfish.  The adjustment was fairly easy, but I'm still using some of my teaching techniques from RC.  If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

The Starfish Aquatic program might look a little different from the outside.  Instead of numbered levels,  SA does colors.  The levels are also broken down into "Swim School" and "Stroke School". The goal of Swim School is to prepare students to learn competitive strokes in Stroke School.

The levels for both schools are white, red, yellow, blue, and green.  Skills in Swim School are geared towards body position and movement, not on specific strokes.  Stroke work is done in Stroke School, with each color level working on a specific competitive stroke, such as freestyle in White Stroke School, and butterfly in Yellow Stoke School.

The "lower" levels of Starfish look very similar to those in Red Cross; going under water, floating, blowing bubbles, etc.  The main difference is that Starfish focuses only on skills that will eventually be competitive swim strokes.  There is no sidestroke or elementary backstroke taught in Starfish.  More time is spent on preparing swimmers for good technique, such as swimming on the side and body rotation.

I am still a certified Instructor Trainer for Red Cross, and will still be able to write about Red Cross lessons, but I will also be adding Starfish to this blog.  

DIY Swimming Lessons

It is my personal belief that teaching your children to swim is one of the most important life-skills you can give them.  With any other sport, if they don't like it or can't do it well, it's not a big deal.  No one ever died from being bad at soccer, right?  But swimming is another matter.  Yes, you could avoid situations in which you'd have to swim.  But what happens if your child falls into a lake?  Tips over in a boat?  Heck, with all the flooding going on recently, what if your child has to swim for his/her life?  I encourage every parent out there to start their kids out right when it comes to water safety and adjustment.  Take them to a parent/tot class.  Sign them up for swimming lessons as soon as they turn 4.  Make them stick with it until they at least pass level 4 in the RC program, whether they like it or not. 

I do understand, however, that not everyone has access to a good Red Cross swimming program, for geographical or financial reasons.  Even without that resource, it's possible to start your child off on the right foot when it comes to learning to swim.  You can teach your child to swim yourself in your own backyard or local pool by following the steps outlined in this article:

DIY Swim Lessons for Kids: A Guide For Parents

Keep in mind that all children will go at their own pace, but that motor-skill development is fairly predictable among children 0-5 years of age, so your child is probably physically capable of the skills mentioned in each section. 

Have fun swimming!

Swimming Lessons: Passing to the Next Level

In the past month, I've had two different cases of parents deciding to move their children up to the next level after the previous teacher had not passed them.  They felt that there was no progress being made at the current level, and thought that the solution was just to sign them up for the next highest level.  In both cases, the student was a Level 2 and ended up in my level 3 class.

In the first case, I was able to work with the student get her skill level to improve up to a level 3.  The other student, however, was not progressing in level 2 because of her over-dramatic fear of drowning.  This did not improve with a move to the "big pool".  She became even more worried, and refused to try even those skills she had already mastered because she couldn't touch the bottom.  In this case, her mother actually set back her progress by pushing too hard, too fast.  I recommended private lessons to work through her fear of deep water and hopefully make some progress that she wasn't getting in regular lessons. 

This article was written for all the parents who are tempted to push ahead even if their children are not ready for the next level of swimming lessons. 

Swimming Lessons: Passing to the Next Level

It explains why it's not a good idea, and gives tips for what parents can do to ensure their children are progressing in the correct swimming lesson level.

Swimming Lessons: Private vs. Group Lessons

When it comes time to enroll their child in swimming lessons, many parents are unsure what situation will lead to the best results. With so many programs out there, each with their own goals and strengths, how is a parent supposed to choose? One of the first decisions to make is between enrolling your child in private swimming lessons or group swimming lessons. Knowing the benefits and weaknesses of each approach will allow parents to choose the best swimming lesson for their child.

Group Lessons

When someone says “swimming lessons”, they are usually thinking of group lessons. In this set-up, there are multiple children per instructor. Numbers vary from 3-4 students for young children to 6-8 for older, more experienced swimmers. Red Cross and YMCA are two of the biggest providers of group swimming lessons in the US.

Advantages

Group lessons are often the cheapest option. Prices generally range from $20-$50 for about 8 lessons. They are also easy to find; most health clubs, community centers, and sports complexes offer some form of group swimming lesson.

The biggest advantage to group lessons is the social interaction between students. Kids benefit from being able to watch their peers try skills and accomplish tasks. It gives them the confidence that they might be able to do it too! Swimming is more fun for children when they get to play games and show off for their peers. Group lessons also allow kids to get some rest between activities, as other students take their turn. A swimming lesson can also teach kids good social skills such as taking turns, sharing, and playing fair. There is also the opportunity for students to learn how to encourage each other in a scary setting and be patient with other people.

Disadvantages

The main disadvantage to group lessons is lack on one-on-one time with each student. Even the best teacher can only spend so much time with each child on focused correction and feedback. She may have to spend time disciplining a challenging child or coaxing a fearful one, leaving the other children with lots of free time. As a result, kids in group lessons may not advance as fast as they would in a private lesson setting. Group lessons are also highly standardized and may not be a good fit for every child and skill level.

Private Lessons

Private lessons consist of one instructor and one student. Some parents may choose to have siblings of similar ages “share” a private lesson.

Advantages

In a private lesson, the student(s) get focused, one-on-one attention. Instructors are able to concentrate on the needs of the individual child. Drills can be customized to the skill level of the student. As a result, students tend to advance faster in a private lesson. Discipline can also be tailored to the student's challenges, leading to a better learning environment for both student and instructor. The lesson can also meet the personal goals of the student and parents, from water adjustment to safety skills to competitive swimming skills.

Disadvantages

Private lessons can be expensive, starting at $15 per lesson. It may also be more difficult to find a good private instructor. There is a lack of social interactions with peers, which may cause motivation challenges, as lessons may seem more like work than play. There is no opportunity for children to watch their peers try and master skills, which could benefit a nervous child. Private lessons also make it more challenging for an instructor to keep a child engaged for the entire session.

So which option should a parent choose?

Group lessons may be the best option for families in which cost is a major issue. It is also a good option for children who may be unsure of the water and slightly shy, where the social aspect of group lessons will allow them to observe their peers. While children will advance at an acceptable rate in group lessons, this option is best for parents who are less concerned with speedy results and want their children to learn to love the water and interact with their peers.

Private lessons may be the best option for parents who have a specific goal in mind. It might be to learn to swim in time for a vacation, or improve stroke performance for swim team. A private lesson is also a great option for those children who may have have had a traumatic experience with water and need to progress slowly. Students who may become distracted by other students or need specialized direction and discipline would also benefit from a private lesson.

Swimming Lessons Reduce the Risk of Drowning in Children

The debate over swimming lessons for small children has been heated for a long time. There are those that maintain children should be in the water as soon as possible, learning self-rescue techniques. Critics of early swimming lessons feel that allowing young children to feel comfortable in the water actually increases the danger of drowning. Now there is finally a study that tackles this very debate.

The study was conducted by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. “Association between Swimming Lessons and Drowning in Childhood” was published by the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine in March of 2009. This is the first definitive study to show that taking your child to formal swimming lessons can reduce their risk of drowning. The study focused on case studies of 88 children who drowned between 2003 and 2005, and the families of 213 control children of the same age, gender, and location. The study revealed that among the 61 children between the ages of 1-4 who had drowned, only 3% of children had had formal swimming lessons, versus 26% of the control group. The risk of drowning in that age group was determined to be decreased by almost 88%.

I applaud this study as an excellent starting point for exploring the benefits of swimming lessons. But critics of the study, myself included, would like to see more. Swimming lessons programs vary greatly in the skills they prioritize. Some programs, such as Red Cross, focus on water adjustment, while others consider safety skills to be the main objective. In a response to the LA Times article reporting the results of the study, Dr. Harvey Barnett, Ph. D, founder of Infant Swimming Resource LLC outlines six approaches to swimming lessons; water adjustment, structured play, swimming readiness, swimming with devices, survival swimming, and modified adult strokes. He would like to see studies that break these categories up to discover which approaches are more beneficial to drowning reduction in small children. These studies would be incredibly complicated to undertake, as the samples sizes may not be large enough to give any conclusive data.

It is my personal belief that the main benefit of formal swimming lessons for children ages 1-4 is parental awareness. No swimming lesson can drown-proof a child, and only a select few concentrate on infant survival skills in which the child can “rescue” themselves. But the vast majority of swimming lessons for this age group rely heavily on safety information for parents. The Red Cross Parent/Infant classes involve safety tips in every lessons, from allowing children to enter the pool to the benefits of taking a CPR class. It is, of course, up to the parents to follow through with the safety techniques, but it is my personal opinion that the simple awareness of drowning dangers and prevention play a significant role in the drowning-risk reduction seen in the study. Dr. Barnett also credits parental awareness to reduced drowning risk. In the same letter:

“Regardless of whichever particular approach further research shows contributes most to the reduction of the risk of drowning, care giver and parent education must be a primary effort. Lessons for infants in the water whether formal or not must include comprehensive and effective adult education. The programs should aim to make the baby safer in the water and the family safer around it.”

So if the information given in a swimming class is the significant factor in drowning prevention, does it stand to reason that reading a book or doing an internet search would be just as effective? I believe the answer is no. Active instruction lets parents and children practice safety skills. Parents are able to receive answers to questions and get feedback from experienced instructors. And experiences in swimming lessons allow the parent and the child to remain much more calm in an emergency, making good decisions that can save lives.

Sources

Ruth A. Brenner, Associations Between Swimming Lessons and Drowning in Childhood, Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, March 2009, Vol. 163 No. 3

http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/163/3/203?maxtoshow=&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&fulltext=swimming+lessons&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&resourcetype=HWCIT

Shari Roan, Swimming Lessons Lower Drowning Risk In Toddlers, Los Angeles Times, March 2 2009

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/booster_shots/2009/03/swimming-lesson.html

Speedo Vanquisher Goggles

These are my favorite goggles. I used them for competitive swimming in college, and find them comfortable enough for recreational swimming now.  Silicone eye gaskets have always been my preference over foam gaskets or Swedish goggles with no gaskets.  I also have the added challenge of an eyebrow piercing.  The Vanquisher goggle has a small enough eye piece that I can fit the goggle under my eyebrow ring with no leaking.  These goggles also have a double strap which allows for a better fit, especially for block starts.  I also like that the buckle is on the back of the strap, as opposed to being at the temple like most goggles.  The nose piece is not adjustable, but the goggles come with three different sizes that can be switched out for personal comfort.  I have two pairs, a dark, mirrored pair for outdoor swimming and a blue, non-mirrored pair for inside.