This Fall, the Stamford Family YMCA is reintroducing our Y-USA APPRICED SWIM LESSON CURRICULUM. This swim lessons curriculum allows for both standardization and flexibility. The curriculum organization ensures that swim lessons programs look and sound the same at every Y across the country. But that way students move through the curriculum can be adapted to meet the needs of all Ys in all communities. All swim instructors will be trained to teach lessons using the Y-USA curriculum. These changes have filled all the needs of swim participants, communications with families and solid structure for instructors.
At a high level, the curriculum is organized into here general categories:
Recommended age range: infants and toddlers (6 Mons. -3 yrs.)
Recommended age ranges: Preschool youth (3-5 yrs), School age youth (5-12 yrs.), teens and adults (12+yrs.)
Recommended age ranges: school age youth (5-12 yrs.), teens and adults (12+ yrs.)
Each category of the curriculum is further divided into stages. The early stages focus on basic swimming readiness skills. Once those are achieved, the focus shifts to stroke introduction, refinement and technique. This approach provided students with a solid foundation for refining their swimming skills as they progress through the stages of program. The stages form the core of the curriculum and when sequenced, provide a clear path to mastery for students. The use of stages in the curriculum underscores the importance of progression toward a goal.
On Thursday August 31, 2023 at 2pm-4pm, Aquatics staff will be in the lobby of the Stamford Family YMCA answering any questions you may have in regards of the curriculum. Our Y Staff looks forward in seeing you all.
Promotes water enrichment and aquatic-readiness activities for children and their parents or other trusted adults. In this program, the developmental experiences of each child are used to build the child’s self-confidence. Parents learn from the instructor’s example how to guide their children through positive reinforcement and appropriate praise. So let’s just pool it!
Stage A: Swim Starters Water Discovery
Parents accompany children in this class, which introduces babies and parents to the aquatic environment through exploration that encourages them to enjoy themselves while learning about the water. The general goals of the program are:
- To encourage developmentally appropriate expectations by parents of babies enrolled in water enrichment programs
- To introduce and emphasize basic aquatic safety to parents
- To provide a positive parent/child aquatic experience and an opportunity to build the parent/child relationship
- To provide parents and children the opportunity to share common experiences, socialize, and interact with one another
Stage B: Swim Starters Water Exploration
In this class, parents are guided to work with their child to explore body positions, floating, blowing bubbles and fundamental safety and aquatic skills. The general goals of the program are:
- To encourage children to explore their aquatic environment and their own skills with parents’ help
- To introduce basic water skills such as kicking, breath control, and body control or balance
- To encourage children to make purposeful movement in the water and movements in response to visual and verbal cues
- To have fun in the water using toys and floatation devices and interacting with other children
- To emphasize basic aquatic safety to parents
- To provide a positive parent/child aquatic experience and an opportunity to build the parent/child relationship
