Autism and special needs swim lessons have always been linked together. Swim lessons are a life saving service and activity, and neurodivergent people need these benefits just as much as everyone else.
So it is by virtue of human nature that we find a link between swim lessons and autism. Thanks to that, it is also very important that we talk about this link and how these two things come together.
You may have heard by now of “Special Needs Swim Lessons” or “Swim Lessons For Differently Abled People”.
These however are terms that sometimes don’t do justice to the specificity that can be found within special needs swim lessons.
First of all “Special Needs Swim Lessons” aren’t necessarily designed for any particular group of people. This is a catch-all term that refers to swim lessons that include students with any sort of differences from the wide public.
These differences can be physical as well as psychological. Special needs swim lessons can be so differ so much from one another, that putting them all in one category feels so wrong.
Yet, we have used special needs swim lessons in our title, why is that? Well, the only reason is convenience and ease of understanding.
Whether the term is adequate or not, the term ‘special needs swim lessons’ has entered the zeitgeist and everyone knows what it refers to.
The pedantics of the terminology aside, we wanted to do a ‘deep dive’ into the topic of autism and special needs swim lessons, with the aim of giving you a better understanding of what they are and how they work.
The Link Between Autism And Special Needs Swim Lessons Explained
As we have understood so far, autism and special needs swim lessons are connected, but not all special need swim lessons are meant for neurodivergent peoples, or specifically people in the autism spectrum.
The link between autism and special needs swim lessons is found within the instructor providing the swim lessons.
This is mostly due to the nature of autism. The condition itself is a spectrum, and the way in which it can affect people can vary widely.
This is why we believe the swim instructor to be the main link between Autism and special needs swim lessons.
It is the task of the instructor to assess the right method of teaching that would be most beneficial for the student.
The act of swimming is, of course, the same for everyone. With autism and special needs lessons what needs to be different is the teaching method.
Essentially, one can say that autism and special needs swim lessons reach the same destination as any sort of swim lessons, but just by using a different route.
Finding the right instructor for your swim lessons can be the tricky part of the process. As we said, the instructor will play the crucial role.
The best bet for special needs swim lessons is always going to be private swim lessons. On top of the usual benefits of going with private lessons, they become even more important when we are talking about neurodivergent people.
There is just no room for the special care, assistance and attention needed in group lessons. Going solo, helps put the focus wholly on one student and their progression.
Here we need to trade carefully. Of course, we do not want to create a segregation of any sort between neurotypical and neuroatypical people.
Of the many misunderstandings that circulate about autism and neurodivergent people, a very dangerous and persistent one is the view of these characteristics as flaws that need fixing.
It is beyond crucial that we understand autism and special needs swim lessons are not a problem and a solution.
Instead they should be viewed as a keyhole and key. Where the key simply fits a specific keyhole. This is to say, that certain needs that deviate the usual norm aren’t flaws.
Other Things To Know About Autism And Special Needs Swim Lessons
As we said autism and special needs swim lessons are linked together, but there is more to know about the two, and more that we need to discuss here.
First and foremost allow us to say that antisocial behavior and autism are two different things. At the same time, there are certain social deficits that people in the autism spectrum tend to display more than the general public.
It is important that we understand the difference between the two, because swim lessons and learning to swim, is very much dependent upon the trust connection that the student can create with the instructor.
With neurodivergent people, due to the way that socializing works for them, it can be a bit more challenging to form that bond.
This means that the swim lessons may take longer to show results. This is why it is very important that the lessons are tailor made for the student in cases like this.
If you are a parent who wants to enlist their child for special needs swim lessons, you need to be aware of this.
By being aware of it, it can help put your expectation closer to reality. We have mentioned this before too, but the biggest issue with swim lessons for children has always been the unrealistic expectations that some parents put on them.
Moving on from unrealistic expectations, to another thing that parents who have to go for special needs swim lessons, we need to discuss one last thing.
Make sure that you are in safe hands with your swim lessons and put a huge emphasis on safety during the lessons.
This is a rule that everyone should follow! However, if you find yourself in need of special needs swim lessons, then you know that there are many risk factors that come into play.
At the end allow us to say that we do our best to educate ourselves everyday on these topics, as much as we can. We have tried our best to cover this topic in a dignified manner!
We sincerely hope to have done that, and we pray that you walk away from this having learned a thing or two about autism and special needs swim lessons!
