If you have questions not answered here, ask us.
According to the CDC, there are approximately 4,000 fatal drownings and another 8,000 near-fatal drownings in the Unites States each year. It is the leading cause of injury related fatality for ages 1-4. Drowning is fast and silent. It can happen in as little as 20-60 seconds. Our main mission is to save lives by teaching people of all ages how to be safe around water and how to swim.
The Hudson Valley Swim program starts as early as 6 months and sometimes 5 months if the baby enjoys bath time. The class is called a Pollywog.
Hudson Valley Swim teaches swimming lessons to students of all comfort levels. Any of our beginner classes: Starfish for ages 3-6 years, Marlin for ages 7-12 years, as well as the Teen and Adult Beginner for ages 13 years and older are appropriate as we teach “comfort” before we begin teaching skills.
Yes! Hudson Valley Swim instructors work with adults on a regular basis. Some fear the water, and some just want to learn the basics of swimming. We also have classes for those that want to swim for exercise and want to improve their technique.
Most of the time you will have the same swim instructor, however we reserve the right to bring in a substitute in the event your instructor is sick, is on vacation, or resigns. Our instructors teach to the same lesson plan and use the same techniques.
During registration, all classes are open for swim lesson registration however a location may opt to run Priority Registration in advance of Open Registration to give current students a chance to re-register into their same timeslots. Students registered during the priority period must then submit a transfer request which will be processed prior to Open Registration.
Unfortunately, only those swimmers in the current swim lesson session are eligible to return to their existing timeslots during Priority Registration.
This is one of the policy decisions we made years ago, and we believe it to differentiate us from many other swim lesson programs. The main reasons are that we only offer session-based registration instead of rolling registration for the following reasons:
Our Pollywog and Goldfish swim lessons do require a parent to get in the water. Starting with Starfish classes, parents no longer need to be in the water as the child will be expected to sit on the stairs or on the wall with the others that are awaiting their turn.
There are several levels within each swim lessons program as some students are just starting a level while others are repeating the level. This is very common, and our instructors are trained to individualize their lesson plan in each class.
That is a decision left to each swimming location. Often the location manager will try to consolidate some classes so that they have at least a few students in them.
It is so important to learn how to float in swimming lessons! If a child does not know how to swim and either falls in the water or finds themselves in distress, rolling on their back is one of the primary ways to survive until help arrives.
The requirements for a swim uniform differ by age. For ages up to 3 (typically Pollywog and Goldfish classes) or for any child or adult who cannot control themselves, we require you to “double bag” it. This means a disposable diaper on skin, covered by a reusable diaper over it, both of which go under the bathing suit. Our goal for this age is to control pool accidents which result in pool closures and an expense to clean the water.
For ages 3 and older (Elementary Program and older), we require goggles, preferably with a clear lens. Anyone that has shoulder length hair must also wear a swim cap. This helps keep the filters free of hair and keeps the hair out of the student’s face during lessons.
And of course, everyone MUST bring a towel to dry off BEFORE leaving the pool area. This is for your safety as well as the safety of others using the facility as wet floors become slippery.
We will offer you what is available, and you will need to make accommodations to attend. Classes often fill up since they only hold a few students, so usually there are limited spaces available to make up a class. While makeups are not guaranteed, we will do our best to find something that works for you.
Not usually! Your instructor will indicate to you towards the end of a session which level to register for in the following swimming session. Every level has a series of skills that need to be learned and it is typical to repeat a level at least 3 times before they are all mastered. Of course, every student is different so sometimes it takes less time and sometimes more.
