The National Institutes of Health recently released a study that supports the positive impact learn to swim lessons can have on young children and drowning prevention. It states, “Providing very young children with swimming lessons appears to have a protective effect against drowning and does not increase childrens’ risk of drowning.” Contrary to long held beliefs, introducing your infant to swimming lessons at even 6 months, does not encourage them to be overly bold and unsafe around water. The study concludes:Participating in formal swimming lessons was associated with an 88% reduction in the risk of drowning in children between the ages of 1 to 4. (Arch Pediatric Med. 2009; 163(3):203-210) Click here to read the full study.

We start our Otter Baby program at age 6 months. This is what feels comfortable for our instructors and curriculum. The real answer is… you know when it’s best to start. Because the Otter Baby program requires an adult, it is really more important to have Mom and Dad on board for the weekly visit, the changing room, getting wet, singing “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” 5 million times… than baby. What works for you will work for baby. Most parents tell us this is a wonderful time with their children and some tell us it is the half hour they get to relax and tune into their baby.  Try us when you’re ready.

The best time to start lessons is when the child and the family are ready to learn.  Our classes are starting constantly and we may be able to get you into a class this week.  The biggest factor in children doing well in swim lesson is consistant attendance and supportive parents.  Some children take longer to warm up to new experience and parents that in for the long haul are able to get past this initial reluctance.

Everybody needs a little dose of encouragement from time to time.  There will be times when your child feels frustrated with progress.  They may say that they are bored or that they are doing the same things.  This happens more in advanced classes as children are learning more of the finer points of swim technique.  The progress starts to slow a little are skills are refined.  Definitely, let your deck manager know if your child is bored or frustrated there are things we can do in the lesson to make them better.  Also, your deck manager can explain what skills are being worked on and what skills are still needed to pass to the next level.

It isn't unusual for children to become bored or frustrated and it's important at these times to offer your child lots of understanding and encouragement.  Point out to them that learning to swim is like learning to ride a bike.  Remind your child how it wasn't much fun when they learning to ride their bike and kept falling off.  And remind them that after lots of practice they did learn to ride and it's now lots of fun to ride their bike. Just like riding a bike, with lots of practice and time in the water, they will be soon swimming and having lots of fun in the pool.

Success breeds success and praising your child's efforts will help build sef-confidence and the will to learn.  Celebrate the small victories.

If you want your child to learn to swim as quickly as possible then year round swimming provides the best results. Swim lessons take place in many different climates around the world.  Children learn to swim in far lower tempretures than our 90 degree pool.  Our year round facility is designed for the comfort of your children.

Putting old wives tales to rest.

Your child won't catch a cold from the water.  Colds are viruses and your child probably has more chance of catching a virus from attending daycare, preschool, school or playgroup than from the treated water in a swimming pool.  We also don't avoid showers and bathing during the winter we just take care to dry off before we go outside.

Children who participate in swimming during the winter do not get more coughs and colds than their non swimming counterparts.  In fact, parents of children who participate in year round programs report that their child has had their best winter yet.  This is not surprising as we know that excercise strengthens the immune system and that swimming is a very healthy activity, especially for the lungs.

All children under the age of 3 or children that are not potty trained must wear a fitted reuseable swim daiper while swimming.  We have them available for purchase in our shop.  Plastic training pants, regular diapers or disposable swim diapers are NOT allowed.

Children ages 3 and older, who are potty trained, need only bring a swim suit and a towel.  If your child has goggles they are welcome to bring them.  We have goggles for sale and for loan for use during the lesson.  If you child has long hair, we ask that you tie it back in a ponytail or have your child wear a swim cap.  This is so your child's hair will not interfere with swimming.

It is not unusual for a child to cry at swim lessons.  For some of our students this may the first time they have taken a class away from their parents.  Consider the swim lesson from the child's point of view.  He or she is in a new place and has a class with an unfamiliar instructor.  With this in mind, our instructors understand the nature of a child's fear.  The instructor will then work to gain the trust of the child and use a variety of techniques to engage your child.  Our instructors will help your child conquer the fear.  Many times a simple reassurance makes all the difference.

Children are all different.  Some will come to swim lessons with no inhibitions about water and just need skills, other children will come to swim lessons with some anxiety about the water or putting their face in the water.  Also, children are at different levels in maturity, physical coordination and development.  Our curriculum is based on 16-18 lessons per level but some children will progress much more quickly than that and others will take awhile to get going and then after that will progress through the levels.  Whatever the case, we teach each child with a gentle and encouraging approach and recognize that every child is different and has different needs.  Our goal is to challenge your child and lead them along the path of learning to swim.

The easiest way to register is to give us a call so that we can talk about what level your child should be.  We can also find which classes times and days that are available.  This call can take as little as 5 minutes and gives you a chance to ask any questions you may have about Little Otter.  Our phone number is 704-846-7946

You are also welcome to stop in a see us during the hours we are open.  Sometimes this is the best way to make sure a facility and program is the right fit for you and your family.  If you want to see a class similar to the class your child will be enrolled in, give us a call and we can tell you when those classes are in the water.  You do not need an appointment just stop by the front desk and let us know you are here and we can show you around and let you watch a class.  After that if you feel like we are a good fit for you we can find classes and sign you up in person.

You can also email us and request classes at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Be sure to give us as much information as possible including age and ability of child(ren) and best days and times for your schedule.    If you would like to download a registration form click here. It is a pdf. You may then fax the form to us or bring it in.  Please note, your spot is not guaranteed until you speak with someone on the phone at Little Otter.Sometimes several families may be interested in the same class so while we will do everything we can to ensure that you get your first choice sometimes classes are full.  If you speak with us on the phone we can make sure the spot is still available and reserved for you.  On the phone, we can also get a little information so that we can enter you into our computer.  We can also do all this over the phone in about 5 minutes and you can fill out the rest of the form when you come for your first class.

In order to maintain the integrity of our classes we do not offer make-ups.  Thank you for allowing us to offer the highest quality possible in teaching your children. We offer a free Friday Family Swim for the entire family if it is necessary for your child to miss a lesson.  This is free of charge for the whole family including siblings if being used to make-up an absence.  If not being used as a make-up there is a fee of $5 per person up to a maximum of $15 per family.  The Friday Family Swims are scheduled every other Friday evening from 6:15 to 8:15.  We have schedules available at the Customer Service Desk and in the calendar section of this website.

Go to calendar to see dates of up-coming Friday Night Family Swims