Learning to Swim at Fairholme Aquatics Swim School

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1 PO Box 688, Toowoomba QLD 4350 T: E: Learning to Swim at Fairholme Aquatics Swim School About Fairholme Aquatic Centre All programs run by Fairholme Aquatic Centre exist to support and add value to our core program, Fairholme FLAMES (Fairholme College Swim Program). About Fairholme Aquatics Swim School Fairholme Aquatics Swim School delivers an aquatic education program with a strong emphasis on sound swimming technique. Swimmers progress through an 8-level curriculum, based on quality rather than quantity. Skill development is promoted by allowing swimmers to practice skills learned during their classes, and extending them as they master each new skill. Our goal is to have children graduate from our program with good skills and competency in every stroke, and to be able to demonstrate the rules and turns for each of the four strokes. Above all, our highest aim is that children are equipped to be safe in a water environment, having the ability to enjoy swimming as a playground for life. During all four swim terms each season, one week is dedicated to Water Safety, where teachers specifically discuss real-life situations with swimmers and how to keep out of danger or get themselves to safety in and around water. In 2013 we received a 10 years continuous registration award from Swim Australia. Other accolades include 2010 AUSTSWIM National Swim School of the Year, as well as 2014 Presenter of the Year for our Head of Learn to Swim, Judy Dickinson. We are proud to have a dedicated, committed and highly skilled staff who are motivated and excited about what they do, who are keen to continue to grow and improve their own skills. All teachers are AUSTSWIM qualified and hold Swim Australia accreditation, and participate in further professional development each year. All Fairholme College employees must also hold a current Blue Card issued by the Commission for Children and Young People and Child Guardians. I look forward to welcoming your children to our pool. Judy Dickinson Head of Learn to Swim Swimming is your playground for life! Learn to Swim: Page 1 of 6

2 Nessie s Nook For your convenience, a number of aquatic products and accessories are available to purchase from Nessie's Nook at the Aquatic Centre Office, including: Swim caps and bathers A wide range of goggles Swim nappies. LEARN TO SWIM: CLASSES AND LEVELS Infant Classes A social outing for babies, these classes will help you and your infant learn about water confidence in a safe aquatic environment. Conducted during mornings in our heated indoor swimming pool, infant classes are a great opportunity for babies and parents to enjoy a special experience together, and also help with your child s motor development, cognitive and communication skills. We start our babies at 6 months of age, usually staying in the infant program until they are around 2.5 to 3 years of age. As songs often help the learning process for small children, our program delivers fundamental swimming safety skills through the use of bright and happy songs, sung by parents following the instructor s lead. Instructor to Parent/Infant Ratio: 1:8. Class Duration: 25mins Levels 1 to 4 Level 1 is our entry level class for swimmers from 3 years of age, designed for swimmers leaving our infant program and their parent/carer for the first time as well as swimmers commencing formal lessons for the first time. The aim of this level is that swimmers feel comfortable and familiar in our aquatic environment, on their own Level 2 concentrates on the swimmer s kick. Long legs, little kick, being able to push and glide with a board and kick independently Level 3 begins work on high arms and breath control Level 4 introduces a sound technical foundation for freestyle. Instructor to Student Ratio: 1:4. Class Duration: 25mins Levels 5 and 6 Level 5 reinforces the correct technique of freestyle, and introduces backstroke. This level includes transition from our 10m teaching pool to the 25m lap pool. Classes may be held in either until the swimmers have gained confidence in the big pool Level 6 introduces butterfly kicks whilst strengthening freestyle and backstroke. All Level 6 classes and higher are conducted in the 25m lap pool. Instructor to Student Ratio: 1:6. Class Duration: 30mins Swimming is your playground for life! Learn to Swim: Page 2 of 6

3 Beginner Squad Beginner Squad teaches the whole stroke of butterfly, along with the introduction of breaststroke kick. Concentrates on the correct technique of breaststroke. Instructor to Student Ratio: 1:6. Class Duration: 30mins Mini Squad Mini Squad completes the learning of all four strokes with correct technique, including starts, turns and finishes. The uppermost level of our Learn to Swim Program, Mini Squad equips swimmers with correct training skills in preparation for competition and Junior Squad (entry level for FAST Club squads). Drills and sprints to build fitness are a key component of this level. Some swimmers may be invited to join the Mini Development Squad, a transition level between Learn to Swim and Junior Squad. We have seen a great improvement in certain younger swimmers in the last few seasons and we would like to encourage these swimmers to continue developing within our swim school. Instructor to Student Ratio: 1:12. Class Duration: 45mins Please note: Enrolment in Beginner or Mini Squad is automatic enrolment into the FAST Track program. Students in Beginner and Mini Squads are strongly encouraged to swim up to three times per week to help build their skills, technique and endurance as they move towards the FAST squad program. FAST Track swimmers who swim more than once a week become entitled to our special FAST Track Multi Swim fees. These two levels are purposefully tailored to prepare young swimmers for squad swimming. The next step up after completing Mini Squad (Learn to Swim) is to join Junior Squad (FAST squad program). FAST Track FAST Track is an additional program for all Beginner and Mini Squad swimmers. It is designed to: 1. Encourage children to keep participating in swimming as a sport 2. Encourage children to gain an interest in other water sports in addition to swimming 3. Add value to the child's swimming experience as they near the end of Learn to Swim. FAST Track aims to help make the transition from Learn to Swim to FAST Squads clear in a fun way, so that children who are interested in continuing their swimming at squad level are supported in doing so. Based on a nationally recognised program, FAST Track: Offers members their own special FAST Track swim pack Organises an annual visit from squad coaches and elite level FAST Swim Club swimmers Invites swimmers in Beginner and Mini Squads to take part in FAST s Club Nights and other special events, usually reserved only for squad swimmers. Swimming is your playground for life! Learn to Swim: Page 3 of 6

4 A-Z of Policies and Procedures Booking for a New Term Swimmers who are already booked in the previous term have the option to keep their current swimming time and day if they pay for the next term during Reconfirmation Week, which occurs approximately two weeks prior to term's end. At the end of Reconfirmation Week ANY booking which has not been paid for in FULL will be deleted. These spaces become available on a first come, first served basis the next morning (Saturday) to anyone during New Bookings Week. Payments can be made at the Aquatic Centre Office in person or over the phone. Term payments MUST be made when booking. If payment has not been made then your place can be taken by someone else s fully paid booking. Bookings or waiting list names cannot be taken before the initial booking date. Due to the volume of bookings taken, priority is given to those who have come to the office in person rather than phone enquiries. If voic messages are left, we will return all calls but cannot guarantee it will be the same day. Important booking dates will be advised via our newsletter, an and by signs posted around the Swim School. Please note: Confirmation of a Learn to Swim enrolment at Fairholme Aquatic Swim School is automatic assumption of agreement with our current Policies and Procedures. Change Room Policy Children are not allowed to change on our pool decks. Male and female change room facilities are provided at the rear of the main pool deck. A unisex change facility is also situated outside the entrance to the teaching pool. Communication Policy If you have any questions about your child's progress or about their lessons, please do not speak to their teachers during classes whether they are in the pool or on deck. Please raise the issue with the Learn to Swim Administrator on duty, or our Head of Learn to Swim. We can answer most of your questions there and then, or we can follow up issues with teachers and get back to you about specific requests. This policy ensures that all swimmers are given their teacher's full attention during class time. Thank you for your support in this matter. Credits and Cancellations Regretfully, we do not conduct make-up classes under any circumstances, nor do we offer credits for reasons other than illness, eg for holidays. If your swimmer is unable to make their class due to illness, please notify our office of their absence BEFORE the missed lesson. If parents have notified the office before the missed lesson we will credit 30% of the cost of the missed lesson. Absences can be notified in person, by phone or (answer machine messages are accepted). Should your child miss more than one lesson due to illness, we require a medical certificate for additional credits. Credits are automatically calculated towards the next term s payment, however credits not used for the next consecutive term will expire. Should a student need to be exited from a class for the remainder of their term booking due to illness or injury, a full credit will be applied towards the next term s fees when a medical certificate is provided. Should a student be exited for any other reason, a 30% credit will be applied to remaining lessons and retained for the next term s fees. In exceptional circumstances, a cheque can be arranged for the remaining credit less a $20 administration cost. In the event that the Aquatic Centre cancels a lesson, a full refund for that lesson will apply towards next term s fees. Swimming is your playground for life! Learn to Swim: Page 4 of 6

5 Emergency Procedures Evacuation due to fire alarm is activated by the sounding of the evacuation siren in the Aquatic Centre. Please listen to and follow all instructions given by Aquatic Centre staff members. Swimmers will be taken by their instructors to the Assembly Point on the main pool deck. Parents will be directed to this area by Administration staff. Once teachers have checked their rolls, students can be dismissed to the care of their parents. The Fire Warden will then advise patrons of the all-clear or give further instruction should evacuation be required. Evacuation due to lockdown will be activated as required. Aquatic Centre staff will ask you to move to the change rooms on the main pool deck until advised by the Fire Warden. Please follow the instructions of Aquatic Centre staff including remaining as silent as possible, and turning off your mobile phone. Lightning: when storms are in the area, our staff monitor storm warning websites in our immediate proximity. If a lightning storm is nearby then we must evacuate all swimmers from the water. In this event, your child will be taken by their instructor to the Assembly Point in the Sports foyer above the pool to wait out the storm. Parents are asked to follow children to this area. Once checked off their coach's roll, children can be dismissed into the care of their parents. Training will resume when the all-clear is given by the Head Coach or their delegate. Graduations Each term, students are assessed by their teachers to see if they meet the criteria for their current level. Please note that a graduation is ONLY possible when a child can achieve ALL of the proficiency requirements of that particular level. During this process, the Head of Learn to Swim will look at all potential graduates to assess the swimmer s current ability. Graduation ribbons will be handed out to students progressing to the next level during Reconfirmation Week. Health / Medical Issues Parents of children with known medical problems should notify us before the child participates in classes. This information will be kept in confidence. If your child has an illness or bug that could contaminate our water supply, such as diarrhoea, conjunctivitis, school sores etc., please do not let your child swim. We do our very best to keep our water clean, please do your best to help us! Holiday Programs We offer week-long intensive swim programs during school holiday periods with the exception of the June/July holiday period. Swimmers participate in a class each day, Monday to Friday, enabling them to build upon and consolidate their learning. Information and dates are in the Swim School and Aquatic Centre newsletters. Parental Supervision All students must have parental supervision until they commence their class and immediately after completion of the class. Our instructors are responsible for the swimmers in their current class. Children under the age of 12 must have an adult in attendance at all times. Children must always be supervised in car parks and under no circumstances are to enter school buildings (including the gymnasium) or playgrounds whilst attending the swim school. Brick walls surrounding the Aquatic Centre are also out of bounds and should not be climbed or walked on. Photography for Swim School use Enrolment of your children into our Swim School gives Fairholme Aquatics Swim School the irrevocable right to use photographs and video footage of those children in all forms, media and manners, without restriction as to changes or alterations, for advertising, trade, promotion, research, training, exhibition, or any other lawful purposes to promote our aquatic related businesses. Any right to inspect or approve the photographs or electronic matter that may be used in conjunction with them now or in the future, whether that use is known to me or unknown, is waived, as is any right to royalties or other compensation arising from or related to the use of the photographs. Parents/guardians understand that name and contact information of the child will be withheld from public disclosure. Swimming is your playground for life! Learn to Swim: Page 5 of 6

6 Term Dates Our swim term is based around the Fairholme College school term. Specific start and end dates may vary. Term dates are available in the Swim School and Aquatic Centre newsletters. Updating Your Details The onus is on the swimmer s parent/guardian to ensure we have up-to-date contact details for the primary contact, additional contact, and emergency contact for the swimmer. What to bring Latex or fabric swimming caps are compulsory for swimmers in Level 3 to 6, and Beginner and Mini Squads. Levels 1 and 2 are encouraged to wear a cap, however we wish to make the students swimming experience fun and it may take a little while for our younger swimmers to become accustomed to wearing a cap. Goggles are recommended for swimmers from Level 1 upwards. Please bring suitable swimwear. As our pools are indoor, rash shirts are unnecessary and can obscure swimming. For infant classes and any swimmers in the process of toilet training - swimmers must wear either a swim nappy or swimmers with elasticised legs to contain accidents in the water. Swim nappies can be purchased at Nessie s Nook. What not to bring Band aids are banned from our pool and should be removed before a lesson. Our policy is that if a wound needs a band aid on in the pool, then you should not be swimming. We do not provide band aids for existing wounds. Please also remove hair clips and bobby pins before the commencement of a lesson. Nasty bugs easily transmitted via water: don't swim during, or for 14 days after, a bout of diarrhoea (following advice from Queensland Health) and similar such as conjunctivitis and school sores. Next Steps: How does my son/daughter enrol? 1. Contact Fairholme Aquatic Centre Office on or nessie@fairholme.qld.edu.au to speak to one of our friendly staff, who will generally book an assessment for your child to determine the most suitable class to enrol in. Please note: the Aquatic Centre Office is open Monday to Friday between 9am to 11am, and 2.30pm to 5.30pm, and on Saturday mornings from 9am to 11am. Reduced hours of operation occur during school holiday periods. 2. Confirm your family and student (swimmer) details for your booking. 3. Finalise payment. Payment for the coming term must be made in advance. 4. Start swimming with your teacher! Swimming is your playground for life! Learn to Swim: Page 6 of 6