Get your child in swim lessons early! Children can start swim lessons as young as six months of age. Studies have shown that early swim lessons reduce the risk of drowning by as much as 88 percent.
Although no one can ever be completely water safe, when a child knows how to swim they are more likely to:
- Respect the water
- Be able to float and call for help
- Less likely to drown if they reach the water unnoticed
Swimming also provides additional benefits:
- Increasing confidence
- Early swimmers tested higher in:
- Physical and cognitive development
- Story recall
- Understanding directions
Here are some swim schools our followers recommend*
Blue Buoy Swim School
1702 Nisson Rd.
Tustin, CA 92780
(714) 710-7911
Blue Buoy Swim School is an Orange County legend. They have been teaching children to swim here for over 40 years. Jasper’s sister started her lessons here at 6 months of age. The philosophy at Blue Buoy is to teach children respect for water in a safe and nurturing environment in line with their developmental abilities. Children who learn to swim here are life-long lovers of water. Highly recommend. – Julie
Amber’s Swim School
8692 Rath Circle Dr.
Huntington Beach, CA 92646
(714) 598-6163
Evolution Swim Academy
6 South Orange County Locations
23854 Via Fabricante Unit G4
Mission Viejo, CA 92691
(949) 388-4545
We go to Evolution Swim in Mission Viejo. They have seasonal outdoor locations as well but we like Mission Viejo because it’s indoors. We love it here! He’s had great coaches. I would definitely recommend them. Kaitlynn is the operations manager. If you have any questions she’s really sweet.
Christina Henderson
WaterSafe Swim School
Anaheim, Cerritos, Seal Beach
(855) 977-7946
Neal has been going to Watersafe Swim School off and on since he was two months old. We love it here! The instructors are wonderful and really caring. Neal has had lessons with both Miss Jesse and Miss Kristi and he loves them both! They are always playful, kissing on him and making him feel comfortable in a sometimes uncomfortable lesson. My husband and I recommend this swim school to anyone with children.
Jessica Lynch
Waterworks Aquatics
14401 Willow Ln,
Huntington Beach, CA 92647
(949) 450-0777 – Orange County
(760) 603-9300 – San Diego
My main goal for my daughter was to help her being safer around pools- meaning if she falls in the pool without someone seeing, she can either float or swim to the side of the pool and call for help. When she was one, we signed her up for the Parent and Me classes. Although the classes were fun, and it taught my daughter to be comfortable in the water, it did not teach her these skills. We later signed her up for semi-private instructions. Those lessons were more beneficial, as she learned to turn around and float on her back after jumping in (with the instructors help). The Parent and Me classes are good for meeting other parents and having fun with your baby, but I recommend getting the semi-private or private lessons if you want your child to learn how to swim quickly.
Jessica L. Wilson
San Diego Area
Murray Callan Swim Schools
2 locations: Carlsbad and San Marcos
858-273-7946 (SWIM)
YMCA of San Diego County
17 locations
858-292-9622
We swim at the local YMCA. At the Y you have a few different options for lessons. •Children under 2 years only have “mommy/daddy and me” type lessons, getting child used to the water.
- Over 2 years, you can have group,(3-6 kids) semi-private,(2 kids) or private lessons.
- Focus on holding breath, floating on backs, rolling over and using “big arms”.
- Lessons move along at each child’s pace. Move to next level when ready.
- Price varies.
YMCA offers scholarships, sliding scale based on income. Visit your local YMCA and speak to aquatics director for info. Our local YMCA helped 88 children learn to swim (financial assistance) last year alone.
Annie Lopiccolo
*The Jasper Ray Foundation for Drowning Prevention and Child Safety is not a swim school and does not offer any type of swim or CPR instruction. The recommendations herein are provided by the community and not necessarily representative of the opinions of the Jasper Ray Foundation. The Jasper Ray Foundation is not liable for any damages incurred whether by contract or injury due to the intentional or negligent actions of any businesses listed on this website. When children are in and around water, there is always a risk of drowning. Parents should always supervise their children when water is present, even when children know how to swim and pools are gated.
