As a practicing Emergency Department physician for 30 years I have faced situations of great joy as well as great sorrow. But of all the things I have dealt with, nothing comes close to the sorrow and anguish of telling a family that their child has drowned. There is no way to describe how we in the Emergency Department feel, each grieving with the families while inwardly promising to always try to keep our own children safe. One of the primary reasons that my wife and I chose Brown Academy for our grandson was because of Brown's affiliation with Water Wise Swim School. We are thrilled at the level of supervision,dedication to teaching water safety and the rapid progress that he has made with Ms.Danelle. He loves the attention and is proud of his progress towards being a real swimmer. I would strongly urge all parents to consider Water Wise classes. There is no better feeling of security than knowing that you have done everything possible to prevent a tragedy.
Alen and Christine Claunch
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Our son Andrew is 8 years old and did not know how to swim. He was SO scared of the water and never wanted to put his face in the water let alone get in the water without a life jacket.
In March we joined Water Wise with Miss Danelle and it is ABSOLUTELY amazing how far he has come! His first lesson he would only get his lips wet. The next lesson he got his nose wet and slowly he would put part of his head in the water. He was so scared, stiff and had a hard time at first. After the 5th or 6th lesson he was gaining more confidence with Miss Danelle and knew that she would be there for him and that he was safe.
The last few weeks in May he has made leaps and bounds. He can now swim using scoops for his arms, puts his face in the water for bubbles and comes up only when he needs air. He can float really well on his belly, go under water to do a "popcorn" by touching the bottom and coming up for air, and do a semi back float on his own. He is SO much for confident in the water. Recently he has been practicing at home and showing his family all that he can do. This has made a big difference since he only attends 2 classes a week.
He never thought he could swim across with width of the pool with Miss Danelle and told her in the beginning he would never be able to do so. Today he swam all the way across the width of the pool without any problem!! It was amazing and we are SO proud of him!
No matter how much a child knows about swimming or how old they are they CAN learn to swim with Miss Danelle. She has taught our son to swim and do amazing things in the water. He knows the water will allow him to float as long as he relaxes, comes up for air, down for bubbles and look for the wall. I am so impressed by Miss Danelle's talent and instructions that she provides for all of the children she teaches. She brings out the best in every child and makes them LOVE the water and have the confidence that is necessary to swim and be SAFE in the water.
Thanks Miss Danelle! You are the best! :)
Jennifer and Pete Harrigan
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Our 3 year old son Vince has been attending Water Wise Swim School for almost a year now.
We just moved to Florida when he started,so he was a little behind the other kids his age and scared of the water. Miss Danelle sensed his fear and really worked with him in a gentle and encouraging way,to build his confidence and his skills. She also teaches the parents how to continue the techniques at home to ensure they are retaining the knowledge and keeping up that confidence level.
Today,Vince is swimming under the water on his own a short distance,and he can safely get in and out of the pool. He is also having lots of fun! He still needs adult assistance, but he continues to learn and build those skills every week. Miss Danelle truly loves each child and works with each one differently based on their
individual skill level. She makes each of them feel special. Vince loves Miss Danelle and we feel blessed to have her as his swim teacher.
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It's amazing how my daughter, Caitlin has transformed so quickly into a little swimmer after taking classes with Water Wise. Before taking the courses, she was afraid to get her head wet. Danelle Ryan's teaching technique is positive and encouraging for her students and that's what my daughter needed. Miss Danelle gave Caitlin the confidence to make swimming fun and safe at the same time.
- Lisa Button
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My son has been involved in swimming lessons of some sort since he was six months old. Not until he began taking lessons from Ms. Danelle at Water Wise Swim School did I really see any signs of actual water safety or swimming skills being taught to him. Within a few lessons my two year old son was able to safely pull himself out of the pool. More important than learning to swim he was learning water safety. Within a few weeks I felt sure that if he ever fell in a swimming pool he would know what to do and could safely return to the wall and pull himself out of the water.
Lucas is now in his third session of swimming lessons. He attends at Brown Academy and had his first experience with Ms. Danelle this summer. Since late summer he has learned to not only water safety, but is now able to swim a fair distance with his face in the water, dive down to the bottom of the pool to retrieve toys, float on his back, and jump in without fear! While he still needs assistance from Ms. Danelle, I know that soon he will be swimming all by himself.
Ms. Danelle is warm and loving and the kids squeal with joy when she celebrates their accomplishments with them after every task. She uses positive reinforcement to encourage the children to try again and again until they are successfully able to complete the task. Her celebratory song of, "You did it! You did it!" leaves the children beaming with pride! She seems to know by instinct how to help the children put their fears aside and try their hardest to learn to swim. Lucas could not have a better swimming instructor!
- Amy Mosher
