📋 Step 1: Visit Details
School and location
Date, time and class level
Front desk phone
Where parents may sit or stand
Who is coming (adults and siblings)
Phone, photo and video rules
🗓️ Step 2: Before We Go
Ask the rules Confirm when parents may watch and where to sit or stand.
Plan siblings Bring a quiet activity and an adult to supervise each younger child.
Tell your child Explain: “I will watch from the window. Your teacher is in charge in the water.”
Phone on silent Plan to keep your eyes on the class, not on a screen.
Arrive early Check in at the front desk a few minutes before class.
Bring this card Bring a pen for notes and the question list below.
🤫 Step 3: Viewing Area Etiquette
Voice low Keep conversations quiet so children can hear the instructor.
No coaching Do not call out, wave or signal. Save praise for after class.
Stay in the viewing area Stay off the pool deck unless staff invite you.
Young children close Keep younger children within arm’s reach and under direct adult supervision.
Photos only if allowed Ask first and never film other families’ children.
Let staff lead If a child is upset, let the instructor handle it first and follow the school’s plan.
Tip: a quick thumbs up from far away is usually fine. A shouted instruction is not.
🔍 Step 4: What I Saw
Mark each with a ✓, ? or ✗ and add a note.
💬 Step 5: Questions to Ask
Training How are instructors trained and supervised?
Class size What is the group size and instructor-to-child ratio?
Levels How is a child placed and how do they move up?
Policies What are the make-up, cancellation and weather rules?
Progress How do you share progress with parents?
Upset children What is your plan if a child is nervous or cries?
Children are never alone in or near water. A lesson does not replace adult supervision, and lessons do not make a child drown-proof, at any age. If a child is in trouble in the water, get help and call 911 or your local emergency number.
📝 Step 6: Notes and Next Steps
What I liked most
What I am unsure about
What my child said afterward
Questions still open
Other schools to compare
Decision date
