Summer is coming, and you know what that means! It’s water time!! Our kids are excited because it’s time to splash around in the pool, run through sprinklers, and go to splash pads. Parents are double checking that their kids’ swim gear fits and brushing up on swim lessons.
For parents of special needs children, this is both an exciting and terrifying season.
It’s exciting because water, in its own way, is a sort of therapy for children. It’s terrifying because these children do not have a very good sense of danger. The truly frightening part is that so many of them are nonverbal or minimally verbal. So an incident of them falling in the pool and not being able to yell for help would be a tragic nightmare.
At my home, every door has a chime that goes off. There’s also a chain lock at the very top. The gates going to our pool have combination locks. The fear of Emmett accidentally getting out and running into the pool has made my mom and I extremely cautious.
Swim lessons and water safety are clearly a priority for my family.
Finding instructors who are able to teach special needs children, no matter the communication level, is essential for parents like me. Sometimes it’s difficult to communicate with these kids about what is expected in learning to swim. Having instructors who understand and are skilled to assist with this are a true blessing.
Reaching out and speaking to the instructors I have listed below has been an absolute pleasure. I have included their phone numbers and websites. I’m definitely looking forward to taking Emmett this year for more classes, especially with these great choices!
Steel City Swim School
Phone number: 205-901-7254
Website: www.steelcityswimschool.com
Freedom Therapies
Phone Number: 205-358-7311
Website: freedomtherapies.net
Goldfish Swim School- Hoover
Phone Number: 205-512-9941
Website: goldfishswimschool.com/Hoover
Ady’s Army- Ady’s Fins
Phone Number: 205-824-1255
Website: http://www.adysarmy.org
Alabama Swim School
Phone Number: 205-876-0118
Website: http://alabamaswimschoo.com
YMCA
I have included the different branches, their phone number and the aquatic director’s name. Both Shades Valley and Mountain Brook have instructors that came highly recommended from parents of special little ones.
Alabaster
Phone number: 205-663-7240
Aquatic Director: Addison Davis
Greystone/280
Phone number: 205-981-0144
Aquatic Director: Dawn Everett
Hoover
Phone number: 205-682-1399
Aquatic Director: Christin Dowdy
Mountain Brook
Phone number: 205-870-0144
Aquatic Director: Quin Estes
Instructor: Jennifer
Pelham
Phone number: 205-664-9622
Aquatic Director: Felicia Taylor
Shades Valley
Phone number: 205-870-9622
Aquatic Director: Trey Sullivan
Instructor: Annie and Jennifer
Trussville
Phone number: 205-655-2224
Aquatic Director: Missy Gooden
