Fluid Minds

This book is for anyone hoping to understand the fundamentals of learning how to swim, explore other available options and gain a different perspective into the art of teaching others how to swim. Whether you are an instructor hoping to find alternative ways to teach, or parents wishing to work with their own child in the water, this book lays out methods, techniques and lesson ideas anyone can use. Focused on an animal behaviorist's understanding of shaping and training, this book bridges the gap between classic Skinnerian behaviorism and individual cognitive tendencies of young children as they learn to swim.

Tried and tested methodologies of positive reinforcement, support devices and operant conditioning techniques are explored and provide an easy to follow guide covering babies to adults learning to swim. These techniques, when applied properly, provide amazing results. Proven effective at Angelfish Swim School for nearly two decades, Marcia's unique methods can be used with any skill level of swimmer from one year up to adult, offering a different way to think about how we learn in the water.

Marcia addresses the pros and cons of the 3 common types of learn to swim lessons - infant survival courses, traditional group swim classes, and private one-on-one lessons. She offers an alternative to the mainstream options available, including the benefits and methods of teaching your own child the basics of swimming while demystifying the process for her readers. Oscar, her learn-to-swim device, is integral in her operant conditioning methodology - just like training wheels helping kids learn to swim. By slowly reducing a child's dependence on flotation as motor skills and confidence increase, her methods along with Oscar - Your Swim Buddy, are a perfect combination for a young swimmer's success.