First time at the beach

Going to the beach for the first time is an exciting occasions for most of us. The sights, sounds and movement of the water is always fascinating however to a small child all of the above can cause some problems so please be aware of the following when taking your child/toddler to the beach for the first time especially if it is an open beach (where there is surf as opposed to a protected beach li… read more

Warm water and gritty eyes

The next time you have a bath try putting your face in the water and opening your eyes under the water. You will notice your eyes will react to the warm water and if you keep putting them in the water long enough they will become sore, not burnt but sore. During my competitive career from 1960 - 1968 I did all my training without goggles, not by choice but because there weren't any racing gogg… read more

Find the right class for your child.

Honed by over seven decades of experience the Shapland original Swim in Five program enables our franchisees to assess your child's ability over the phone. The same laws of physics apply today as they did in 1947 and will continue to apply to how your child's body behaves in the water and the questions reflect this fact. A few simple questions answered honestly are all it takes to access y… read more

Highest quality - low cost - ideal learning environment

I have been asked many times how we keep our lesson costs relatively low compared to the local industry mean lesson cost. The answer is simple; lower overheads to run our current specialist learn to swim centers and over seven decades of experience. That experience not only relates to our unique Swim in Five learn to swim program but also to pool design lesson learnt the hard way that bigger is no… read more

No choices if you can't swim.

In this modern age of parenting the emphasis on "Choices" for our children is now part of our parenting skills. Of course the principal of allowing our children to make choices also teaches them that for every choice we make there is also a "Consequence". There are times when children can make bad choices e.g. run across a road, play with matches or jump into a body of water.… read more

Beware of blowing bubbles

If you child is being taught to blow bubbles in the water as part of their Personal Aquatic Survival Skills then I need you to consider the following. Unless we have a very high percentage of body fat most humans will sink, if they are in a body of water, unless they have air in their lungs. It is for this reason that in the unique Shapland Swim in Five Process we do not teach our pupils to blow… read more

Moving through the water

After your child is confident the water will support their body weight (they can float), they then need to know how to start moving through the water. The forces that make your child’s body move through the water are delivered mainly by the hands and feet, and strangely enough the principles that apply to an airplane wing apply to their hands and feet. I won’t bore you with the physi… read more

What to look for in a swim school

Swim Australia approved centre www.swimaustralia.org.au Low pupil to teacher ratios Water temperature of 32 degrees Celsius Toilets and change rooms within a few meters of the pool Heated dressing rooms Friendly, experienced and caring teachers A lesson make up system A well organized reception and booking system Clean, clear, warm water A building free of irrit… read more

When can I expect my child to start doing 'big arms'

This is a question I have been asked a lot over the last forty-three years. The answer to the question lies in an understanding of what makes us move through the water when we swim. To understand the mechanics of moving through the water let me draw your attention to what happens when you walk. When you put your foot on the ground it stays in the one place and your body moves forward. If this wa… read more

Handy hints

VERY IMPORTANT PLEASE READ: When there is a body of water near you, no matter how insignificant you may think that body of water may be, never take your eyes off your child or the person you are looking after. Drowning is a silent killer and occurs in pools, dams, lakes, rivers, oceans, bathtubs, buckets, washing machines, fishponds, tree stump holes, canals and irrigation ditches. Any body of w… read more

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