I’m sitting at the pool with a notebook and have made some observations while watching the kids’ swimming class.

  • Pookie’s swim class aide is amazing at working with him. She a normal life guard and as far as I know has no training at working with children with autism. She lets him jump in the pool frequently but after each jump he must do something else for a little while. He is practicing swim strokes while she holds him up right now. She intuitively understands the way to use the reward system to get the most out of Pookie. He’s happily and willingly doing everything she asks including dunking his head under water.
  • A lot of parents hover at the edge of the pool repeating everything the teacher says. Their kids have the most trouble following the instructors’ directions. Get out of your kids line of sight and let the teachers do their job!
  • The kids whose parents are reading books seem to pay the most attention to the teachers.
  • It is very tranquil at the pool when they shut off all of the fountains for swim class.
  • Pookie does a better job participating in outside swim class. I think the indoor pools trap more noise which ends up getting to him a little bit.

Geetle loves doing anything any authority figure asks her to do.

Here’s an additional note that I added as I typed this.

  • The pool has somehow become a great potty area for Pookie; and I don’t mean in the pool. When we walk into the locker room before and after class, he just walks straight to the urinal, drops his trunk and pees.