Uncategorized, Big Blue Benefits, Kids Activities, Kids Ideas, Parenting, Safety, Swim Instructors, Swim Lessons, Swim Progress, swim safety, Swim School, swimming, swimming lessons, Teachers 02/02/2023

At Big Blue, we are passionate about teaching children to swim. We’re equally passionate about supporting busy families. We designed our mobile app to make it even easier to have a swimmer enrolled at Big Blue.

Every parent or caregiver who brings their child to Big Blue can use the app to manage lessons to ensure a consistent swim experience, track how much your child swims in a given level and track progress overall.

Consistency is key

It’s a simple truth: Kids make the most progress learning to swim when they have consistent lessons. Regular attendance year-round at a weekly lesson ensures your child has the consistency they need to create habits, develop skills and gain confidence.

For busy families, we know juggling all the things going on with kids can be complicated. You want to be able to see instantly when your regularly scheduled weekly lessons are, and when your next lesson is scheduled. The “My Lessons” section of the app shows details on upcoming lessons and who the instructor is for each of your enrolled swimmers.

Here’s how:

1. Open the Big Blue app on your phone or tablet.
2. Select “My Lessons” on the bottom left.
3. Select the weekly lesson you would like information on.
4. You’ll see your child’s current Big Blue level and instructor.
5. You can move the weekly lesson time by selecting “Move weekly lesson” and choosing from any available weekly recurring times. You can also filter by day or instructor to help you make your selection.
6. You can add lessons to your calendar, copy the address to send to someone, or choose to “Get directions” via Google Maps all in the Lesson View.

You can also share that you’ll miss a lesson, change your weekly recurring lesson, or stop the lessons on Lesson View.

Easily make up or change lesson times

We get it; things happen! We also know you want to ensure your child consistently attends swim lessons so they keep making progress. If your child is ill, you have a scheduling conflict, or other issues arise, you can easily let Big Blue know you’ll be missing a lesson and find a convenient make-up time right from the app. You can also move your weekly lesson easily if you need to make a more permanent change.

Here’s how:

1. Open the Big Blue app on your phone or tablet.
2. Select “Make-Up” on the bottom menu.
3. You’ll see the vouchers available to make up lessons next to each swimmer’s name. Select “+” by their name to see the dates of past missed lessons.
   Let us know your child will be missing a lesson by selecting “Miss lesson(s)” and selecting one or more upcoming lessons.
4. To schedule a make-up, select “Schedule Make-Up”. You’ll see details of our make-up policy and can then filter by day or instructor and choose a convenient lesson time under “Add Make-Up Lesson.”

Swimming more makes a huge difference

Consistency with attendance – a weekly lesson year round – is a major indicator of swim lesson success.

At Big Blue, we understand it’s not just about showing up, it’s about swimming! From our carefully designed curriculum to our intentionally small class sizes to highly trained professional instructors, we’ve ensured students at Big Blue spend more time swimming than in other programs. That time spent swimming adds up!

In the app, you can easily see how far your child has swum in their current level.

Here’s how:

1. Open the Big Blue app on your phone or tablet.
2. Select “Progress” on the bottom menu.
3. Under the child’s swim level, swipe left to get to the screen that shows : Total Distance Swum”

Track your child’s progress with SplashZones™

Seeing your child make progress in the pool is what we’re all about at Big Blue. You can get an at-a-glance view of your child’s current level, the skills they’ve mastered at that level, and what they’re still working on anytime in the app.

You can view specific skills your child is progressing at, with videos of each skill. Use the convenient interface to better understand the level your child is at and encourage any practice outside of class.

You can also see the greatest distance they can swim independently. We measure these distance milestones through SplashZones™. On the app, you can quickly see the SplashZone your child has achieved and celebrate their progress as they go from first swimming 3 feet independently to increasing over time up to our most advanced level, when your child will be able to swim 1000 feet without stopping!

Here’s how:

1. Open the Big Blue app on your phone or tablet.
2. Select “Progress” on the bottom menu.
3. You’ll get a quick highlight of your child’s level and the number of skills they mastered on the Progress overview.
4. Select a swimmer to see more details.
5. Under Student Progress, you’ll see all the skills for your swimmer’s current level. Any with a filled-in red star are skills your child has mastered! Skills still in progress have a white star to the left.
6. To see your child’s current SplashZone or their SplashZone progress, click on the “Learn More” button under the blue water drop and you will be able to see their current SplashZone listed as “My SplashZone.”

Refer a friend to try Big Blue

If you’re at the park or playground and talking swim lessons with another parent, or your friend follows up to learn more about why you chose Big Blue Swim School, you can use the app to help spread the Big Blue Difference! Most locations participate in our fantastic referral program. If the referral program is available at your pool, you will be able to access the referral link directly in your app. When you refer a friend, both you and your friend will receive a credit off swim lessons when they enroll in weekly lessons.

Here’s how:

1. Open the Big Blue app on your phone or tablet.
2. Click “Account” on the bottom right.
3. Select “Refer-a-friend” from the menu options.
4. If you want to email the referral directly from your device, select “Email referral link.”
5. If you want to copy the referral link to share in a text, via social, or anywhere else, press “Copy to clipboard,” and your unique link is copied and ready to share.

With features designed for busy families, we hope our mobile app makes it easy to navigate the warm and friendly waters of swim lessons at Big Blue Swim School.

Uncategorized, Big Blue Benefits, Health, Kids Activities, procedures, Safety, Swim Instructors, swimming, swimming lessons 02/01/2022

Learn how swim lessons can help create healthy habits at an early age to ensure children maintain a healthy heart as they age.

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February is American Heart Month, and while heart disease is the leading cause of death for men and women, we want to make sure that our Big Blue Swim School families understand the importance of creating healthy habits at a young age for prevention of heart-related issues as they age.

Many of the risk factors and bad habits that lead to heart disease can develop as a child, including high blood pressure, physical inactivity, high cholesterol, and being overweight. In fact, the CDC says obesity affects 1 in 5 children in the U.S. For children, swim lessons can provide exercise to aid in the prevention of many of the factors of heart disease while providing the physical and mental benefits of exercise for a healthy heart.

“It’s imperative that we teach our children heart-healthy habits at an early age, including healthy eating practices, and the importance of regular exercise,” states Natalie Pitts Kenny, MD, pediatric cardiologist in Atlanta. “Swimming is a wonderful exercise that benefits children in many ways including strengthening the heart, maintaining a healthy weight, and reducing stress.”

Below, Big Blue Swim School provides their top five reasons why swim lessons provide incredible exercise for supporting heart health in children:

Swimming Strengthens the Heart

As a low-impact aerobic exercise, kids can put less pressure on their joints while strengthening their heart–and every other muscle in their body! Swimming can also lower the resting heart rate, strengthening the heart by making it larger, and making the heart more efficient at supplying blood to the body.

Swimming Burns Calories

Swimming is one of the biggest calorie-burning exercises and as such, it’s great for keeping weight under control, thus keeping your heart healthier. According to the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute at the National Institutes of Health, burning extra calories can help you lose excess weight or stay at your healthy weight, which protects against heart disease.

Swimming Lowers Blood Pressure

Studies show that swimming a few times a week can lower systolic blood pressure, improve blood vessel function and lower blood pressure at rest.

Swimming Helps Maintain Cholesterol Levels

Swimming aids in fat burn which helps increase your chance of reducing dangerous cholesterol like Very Low Density and Low Density Lipoproteins. It also raises good cholesterol levels too!

Swimming Helps with Stress

According to the American Heart Association, negative psychological health/mental health is associated with an increased risk of heart disease and stroke. Swimming is a great way to release endorphins and create a positive feeling in the body.

If you are looking to build your child’s confidence in the water, create heart healthy habits and teach them a lifelong love of swimming, we encourage you to start here.

Uncategorized, Big Blue Benefits 01/12/2022

Here at Big Blue, it’s always a great time to get into the water. If water safety and confident swimming are some of your family’s goals for summer, read below for why now is the perfect time to get started with weekly swim lessons.

Our pools are comfortable and family-friendly!

We make it possible to swim comfortably year-round. With 90-degree water at every Big Blue location, shivering in the pool is never a part of learning with us. While your child learns, you can relax in our comfortable, WiFi-enabled viewing lobby. Our bright and welcoming spaces staffed with professional swim instructors are an ideal place to start learning a new and essential skill.

Summer is coming.

Parents often ask us when is the best time for kids to learn to swim. We believe that continuous weekly swim lessons year-round is the best way to make consistent progress in the water. Now is a fantastic time to start swimming lessons since it gives a child time to build skills, confidence, and excitement about swimming for peak swim season.

The summer sun often means spending time with friends at our favorite local pools and go on waterfront vacations with our families. Or, perhaps your family is planning a trip that involves some much-needed pool time. Any way you look at it, swimming is a fun way to spend time outdoors with your household. Knowing your young one is building swimming skills and gaining confidence will give you comfort that your kids will be prepared for better days ahead.

Mind/body wellness is always a good idea.

Many adults make a plan to work on their fitness leading up to summer. With school ending soon, your child may have energy to burn or may be spending more time in front of screens. Heading to a weekly swimming lesson at your local Big Blue Swim School ensures your child gets moving and playing outside of the house at least once a week! A chance to get some physical activity is good for confidence, mood, attention, and health.

Beyond building swim skills, Big Blue swim instructors focus on resilience, growth and celebrating progress. With so many activities and sports on hold, we know how important it can be for kids to have something to look forward to, something to work on, and a way to mark measurable progress.

Have questions about why starting at Big Blue now is a great idea? Just ask!

If you’ve let your child’s lessons lapse but are ready to get restarted, simply log into our app or head to our Parent Portal to schedule.

New to Big Blue Swim School? Sign up for a free trial or weekly lessons today!

Uncategorized, Big Blue Benefits, Kids Activities, Swim Instructors, Swim Progress, swim safety, Swim School 11/10/2021

October 22, 2021, FAIRFAX – One of the fastest growing swim school franchises, Big Blue Swim School today announced the opening of its fourth location in Northern Virginia following its recent successful opening of Chantilly in June 2021.

The newest Fairfax location (located in the Fair City Mall at 9650 Main St. Fairfax, VA 22031) will offer weekly swim lessons year-round for children ages three to six months to 12 years of age. Staying true to Big Blue’s vision of creating a stress-free learn-to-swim experience, every aspect of the Fairfax location will be thoughtfully designed, from the pool layout to the scheduling technology, making it easy for families to schedule multiple kids of various levels and ages to swim during the same 30-45 minute timeframe. This Is just one of the ways Big Blue sets Itself apart from other swim school brands. “With 90-degree, ultra-clean water, a comfortable viewing area that manages for cleanliness and sound, free Wi-Fi, plenty of private changing areas, and capacity for parents to schedule multiple kids to swim at the same time, Big Blue makes It easy to enjoy a weekly swimming lesson routine,” said Chris DeJong, Big Blue’s Founder and President. This will be the brand’s 11th location In their business portfolio.

“We are thrilled to continue to expand within the Northern Virginia market to help children develop a critical life skill that will teach kids to be safer In the water,” said Tom Dolan, President of East Coast Operations for Big Blue Swim School. “Our mission Is to unlock kids’ potential In the water and our swim lessons are led by a team of best-In-class Instructors that have extensive training and guide little swimmers every step of the way. Big Blue strives to teach kids to swim confidently and In turn, they gain skills needed on how to be safe, happy, and confident swimmers.” Dolan, an Arlington native, who won back-to-back Olympic gold medals In the 400-meter Individual medley, opened his first swim school (Tom Dolan Swim School) In 2012 following his Impressive Olympic career. Earlier this year he joined the Big Blue team and maintains an Integral role In the expansion and management of  the Big Blue Swim School brand In Northern Virginia.

To stay Informed of Big Blue’s progress In Fairfax, or to learn more about the special pre-opening deals and the programs offered, visit https://bigblue.link/FairfaxPR or follow Big Blue on Facebook and Instagram @BigBlueFairfax. For job opportunities at Big Blue Swim School Fairfax, please email fairfax@bigblueswimschool.com.

ABOUT BIG BLUE SWIM SCHOOL
Big Blue Swim School was founded in 2009 by competitive swimmer Chris DeJong and now has pools in the Chicago and Atlanta areas. Big Blue offers an unparalleled swim lesson experience made easier and more effective by our professional instructors, proprietary technology and curriculum, and our family-friendly facilities. We create and celebrate Big Moments in the pool which lead to kids learning they can achieve anything in life. To learn more visit www.BigBlueSwimSchool.com.
# # #

Important note about COVID-19 protocol: The health and safety of Big Blue swimmers, families, and staff is our top priority. We are continuously monitoring all federal and local guidelines as they pertain to the safe operation of our pools during the COVID-19 pandemic. We do everything possible to keep our facilities clean and safe with robust protocols around enhanced cleaning practices, social distancing in our facilities, personal protective equipment, and supportive policies for illness and absence. Big Blue pools have a state-of-the-art filtration system that goes beyond standard pool operation protocol to keep our water ultra-clean, and separate HVAC systems to bring fresh air from outside to our pool decks. Our most up to date practices and policies can always be found on the Health and Safety page of our website. Finally, according to the CDC, there is no current evidence that COVID-19 can be spread through the use of pools.

Uncategorized, Big Blue Benefits, Parenting, Safety, Swim Instructors, swim safety, Swim School, swimming, swimming lessons 11/09/2021

At Big Blue Swim School, our goal is to encourage transformations in kids – to go from the development of swim skills to the development of life skills. The swim associates strive to get every kid to make progress towards a BIG moment at every swim lesson.

What sets us apart? Below are the top three reasons to believe in Big Blue.

Life’s Big Moments start at Big Blue Swim School. Visit our website to learn more about kids swimming lessons at Big Blue, or to find a location near you.

Uncategorized, Big Blue Benefits, Kids Activities, Parenting, Swim Instructors, Swim Progress, swim safety, Swim School, swimming 01/28/2021

January 28, 2021, CENTENNIAL – Big Blue Swim School, one of the nation’s fastest growing swim school franchises is coming to the Denver area this spring with its first pool located in Centennial at the Smoky Hill Town Center. The company plans to open additional pools in the Denver market, making their exceptional swim program available to even more families in the region.

The Centennial pool is owned and operated by franchise partners and Denver-based entrepreneurs, Erik and Wendy Skaalerud.

“We are incredibly excited to dive in and open our first Denver-area pool in Centennial,” said Wendy Skaalerud. “Big Blue Swim School provides an exceptional learn-to-swim experience through a team of highly trained, professional swim instructors who are passionate about the mission they deliver. We can’t wait to bring these important, critical, and fun swimming lessons to South Denver including Centennial, Aurora, Parker, and beyond.”

The Centennial pool will be open seven days a week and swimming lessons are offered for children ages six months to 12 years of age. Big Blue has four curriculums of instruction, spanning 11 levels. With weekly lessons running year-round, Big Blue offers flexibility to start and stop lessons at any time. Each child progresses to their next swim level as soon as they achieve the skills required, not when they complete a set number of classes.

“The program Big Blue developed has transformed the way swim lessons are taught,” said Erik Skaalerud. “We make sure that with each visit, every child gains skills and confidence in the water. Doing this allows us to go from the development of swimming skills such as stroke, breath, and movement, to the development of important life skills like courage, perseverance, and hard work.”

In addition to hiring only professional swim instructors, Big Blue sets itself apart from other swim school brands by allowing parents to schedule multiple children to swim during the same 30–45-minute timeframe. “Most schools don’t have the capacity to offer a variety of skill levels all at the same time,” said Wendy Skaalerud. “Parents can use Big Blue’s unique technology to schedule, and if needed, reschedule lessons easily on their phone or tablets. We also provide parents with real-time lesson progress reports, so they know exactly how a child is doing in each class.”

The Centennial Big Blue pool is located at 20153 E. Smoky Hill Road, near King Soopers. Like all Big Blue Swim Schools, the space is designed to maximize comfort for both children and parents. “With 90-degree, ultra-clean water, a comfortable viewing area that manages for cleanliness and sound, free Wi-Fi, plenty of private changing areas, and capacity for parents to schedule multiple kids to swim at the same time, Big Blue makes it easy to enjoy a weekly swim lesson routine,” said Wendy Skaalerud.

The Skaaleruds are franchise industry veterans as early investors in Orangetheory Fitness. They grew their Denver-based Orangetheory franchise to 30 locations before selling in 2018. They currently have a five-pool agreement with Big Blue Swim School, and as they prepare to open their first Denver location in Centennial, the Skaalerud’s are scouting real estate for four additional Big Blue pools in the surrounding areas.

Big Blue Swim School currently operates pools in Chicago and Atlanta. The company has franchise agreements for another 123 schools in 19 states and plans to add another 50 pools in 2021.

To stay informed of Big Blue’s progress in Centennial, or to learn more about special pre-opening deals and the programs offered, visit bigblue.link/PR_Centennial or follow Big Blue on Facebook @BigBlueCentennial and Instagram @BigBlueCentennial. For job opportunities at Big Blue Swim School Centennial, please email Centennial@bigblueswimschool.com.

ABOUT BIG BLUE SWIM SCHOOL
Big Blue Swim School was founded in 2009 by competitive swimmer Chris DeJong and now has pools in the Chicago and Atlanta areas. Big Blue offers an unparalleled swim lesson experience made easier and more effective by our professional instructors, proprietary technology and curriculum, and our family-friendly facilities. We create and celebrate Big Moments in the pool which lead to kids learning they can achieve anything in life. To learn more visit www.BigBlueSwimSchool.com.
# # #

Important note about COVID-19 protocol: The health and safety of Big Blue swimmers, families, and staff is our top priority. We are continuously monitoring all federal and local guidelines as they pertain to the safe operation of our pools during the COVID-19 pandemic. We do everything possible to keep our facilities clean and safe with robust protocols around enhanced cleaning practices, social distancing in our facilities, personal protective equipment, and supportive policies for illness and absence. Big Blue pools have a state-of-the-art filtration system that goes beyond standard pool operation protocol to keep our water ultra-clean, and separate HVAC systems to bring fresh air from outside to our pool decks. Our most up to date practices and policies can always be found on the Health and Safety page of our website. Finally, according to the CDC, there is no current evidence that COVID-19 can be spread through the use of pools.

Uncategorized, Big Blue Benefits, Gifts 11/16/2020

While gift giving can be stressful this time of year, there are ways to think creatively to ensure gifts are fun for kids while also being easy to give! The gift of swim lessons is one that your kids can experience and enjoy through the holiday season and beyond, and one that will give them skills to be safer and stronger swimmers for life. Here are 10 reasons to give your kids the gift of swim lessons at Big Blue Swim School this holiday season.

1. Swim lessons are a safe and comfortable year-round activity for kids and families alike: As the weather gets colder, kids need indoor activities to keep them busy and active throughout the winter months. Big Blue’s warm and spacious indoor facility is a safe and comfortable space for kids to be active year-round, with 90-degree, ultra-clean pool water, an HVAC system that brings fresh air from outside to the pool deck every 10 minutes for our swimmers, and a spacious viewing area for parents to relax or get work done.

2. Swimming keeps kids physically active and healthy: Swimming is one of the safest and best cardiovascular activities for kids. It’s a low impact activity that promotes long-term heart and lung health. Kids build muscular strength and endurance with continuous weekly swim lessons.

3. Swimming promotes brain development: Swimming supports social, emotional, cognitive, language, and fine motor skill development, according to a study by the Griffith Institute for Educational Research. It helps with the mind / body connection as it requires an immense amount of focus and physical coordination. Additionally, when kids swim, their brains release endorphins, which helps boost their moods. Finally, swimming gives kids a place to develop relationships and social skills as they listen, learn and play in the water with others.

4. Learning to swim gives kids confidence as they learn new skills: At Big Blue, we celebrate every accomplishment kids achieve in the water, whether a new skill or overcoming a fear. We call these Big Moments, because we know they will last a lifetime. We provide kids with a safe place to feel confident, secure, and proud of themselves with every bit of progress they make in the water.

5. Swimming helps kids build resilience as they work to overcome fears and challenges: Every day at Big Blue, our Swim Associates help kids learn new swimming skills and are right by their sides as they reach new milestones. But every swimmer has to overcome an obstacle or two before achieving those Big Moments. Swim lessons build confidence and teach kids resilience by challenging them to push beyond their limits, to try and try again, and to trust their own abilities.

6. Preparing for safe summer swimming happens in the winter: As a parent, you may already know these staggering statistics: drowning is the number one cause of death for children ages 1-4 and the second-leading cause of accidental death for children under the age of 14 in the United States, according to the Center for Disease Control. The good news is we know that swim lessons reduce the risk of drowning by 88%! In order to be ready for safe summer swimming, kids need to start learning to swim in the winter months. This gives them time to get comfortable in the water, learn new skills, and build endurance needed to be strong swimmers.

7. Swimming is beneficial to other activities: There are so many benefits of swimming, including cross-training for other kids activities. Swimming pairs well with many other sports and activities because it builds aerobic endurance and muscular strength, is a low-impact activity that can actually help when injuries are present, and requires a lot of mental strength, which helps kids clear their heads and focus on what’s in front of them.

8. Swim lessons give kids a routine and something to look forward to each week: It is so important for kids to have a routine, particularly when so much of the world around them is changing. The consistency of weekly swim lessons with our friendly staff in our warm and welcoming environment is both an activity and a destination that kids can look forward to each week.

9. Increases confidence

Confidence is a characteristic that can help kids in school, sports and throughout life. Swimming helps children gain confidence because they can see and feel themselves advancing in the sport. Kids may begin swim lessons feeling nervous about the experience, but they quickly learn to kick and stroke.

Swimming challenges kids and helps them overcome their fears. It teaches them that they can set goals and achieve them through hard work and discipline.

10. Our schedule is open and ready for your family! New customers can visit our website to register for weekly swim lessons or a free trial lesson (at select pools only). Splash into the holiday season with a gift that keeps on giving.

Uncategorized, Big Blue Benefits, Chicagoland, COVID-19, procedures 09/02/2020

As cooler weather approaches and we continue to maintain our COVID-19 health and safety protocol, we want to be sure that no families are waiting outside to be checked in for swim lessons. We launched our Self Check-in feature on the Parent Portal and on our mobile app so that families can check in for swim lessons and answer the COVID-19 questionnaire in just a few simple steps from the convenience of home or their mobile device, up to an hour before swim lessons begin. Big Blue families can follow these step-by-step instructions on how to use this new Self Check-in feature:

If checking in from the Parent Portal:

Log in to your Parent Portal account.

Click the “Check-in” button next to your child’s swim lesson. The check-in window opens one hour prior to the lesson start time and ends five minutes after the lesson begins.

Answer the COVID-19 questions that appear on the screen. Click the “Continue” button to submit. If you answer “Yes” to any of the questions, your child will not be allowed to participate in swim lessons that day. Please take advantage of our flexible Make-Up Lesson Policy and reschedule your child’s lesson.

Select the swimmer(s) that you would like to check in.

Click the “Submit” button to complete the Self Check-in. The following confirmation screen will appear with next steps.

If you need to reference this confirmation page again, simply click on the green “Checked-in” button next to your child’s lesson

If checking in from the Big Blue mobile app:

Click the “Check-in” button next to your child’s swim lesson. The check-in window opens one hour prior to the lesson start time and ends five minutes after the lesson begins.

Answer the COVID-19 questions that appear on the screen. Click the “Continue” button to submit. If you answer “Yes” to any of the questions, your child will not be allowed to participate in swim lessons that day. Please take advantage of our flexible Make-Up Lesson Policy and reschedule your child’s lesson.

Select the swimmer(s) that you would like to check in.

Click the “Submit” button to complete the Self Check-in. The following confirmation screen will appear with next steps.

We can’t wait for our Big Blue families to start using this feature!

Visit the health and safety page of our website to learn more about all of our COVID-19 procedures.

Uncategorized, About Big Blue Swim School, Big Blue Benefits, Swim Lessons 08/25/2020

Your referrals are a BIG deal to us. To show you just how much we appreciate you helping us spread the word, we give you $50 in swim lesson credit for every new family you refer that signs up for weekly swim lessons at Big Blue. That’s not all! New families also receive a $50 swim lesson credit when they sign up for weekly lessons using your unique referral link.

There is no limit to the number of friends you can refer. Follow these steps to make sure you and your friends get credit for helping us grow!

Parent Portal

1. Log in to your Parent Portal account (found in the upper right-hand corner of our homepage).

2. Click the "Refer a Friend" button.

3. Select how you’d like to send your referral. Choose from sending a customizable email, posting a link on Facebook, or copying your unique referral link to share your preferred way!

4. Repeat for every friend and family member that you want to refer to Big Blue.

Big Blue Mobile App

1. In the "Account" section of the mobile app, click on "Refer-a-friend."

2. Click on the email button or copy your unique referral link to spread the word on social media, through text, or however you choose.

Please note, earned referral credits cannot be combined with any other offers and will apply to full price weekly lessons only.

It’s that simple! Share your love for Big Blue with friends and start earning referral credit today!

Uncategorized, Big Blue Benefits, Chicagoland, Parenting, Swim Lessons 08/13/2020

Magda Lasota-Morales has been a proud ambassador of Big Blue since she enrolled her sons at Big Blue North Center when it opened in March 2019. We originally chatted with Magda in late February 2020, just before the Covid-19 shut down. Since our conversation, Magda’s family has moved to Los Angeles to embark upon a new adventure. However, her commitment to keeping her boys in swim lessons, and why she chose to drive more than 30 minutes across town to swim at Big Blue, is as relevant as ever as families look for safe ways to keep their children active and socially engaged.

Magda Lasota-Morales enrolled her sons in swim lessons in Chicago at Big Blue Swim School over a year ago. Every week, she makes the trip from Hyde Park with her two- and four-year-old boys to Big Blue’s North Center pool. On a good day, it’s a 30-minute drive, but with unpredictable Chicago traffic, Magda gives herself an hour for travel. She says, “It’s so worth the drive! There is nothing else quite like Big Blue Swim School near me, so I don’t mind the commute. We all love going there, and Big Blue makes the entire process so easy.”

Magda tried other swim schools closer to home, but scheduling swimming lessons for two boys was a serious challenge. As a business owner and entrepreneur, her schedule is somewhat flexible, but needing to find different days and times to accommodate both kids was out of the picture. “Being able to bring both of my boys to swim lessons at the same time is one of our favorite things about Big Blue, and the ease of scheduling our lessons on the Parent Portal is very important to us.”

Back to that unpredictable Chicago traffic – “There was a time when we were stuck in traffic and I knew we couldn’t make our lessons on time,” said Magda. “I called the school, and since Big Blue has such an accommodating schedule of classes, they were able to fit both boys into the next session, just 30 minutes later. It was a big win for my kids because they got to play for a while with the trains and sneak in some organic lollipops before their lesson started. It was a win for me because I didn’t have to make the same trip all over again.”

What else makes Big Blue worth the drive for Magda and her family?

• “We love that managers are always on the floor to keep an eye on everyone’s progress, and it’s great to know what our sons are achieving at each lesson.”
• “The way Big Blue celebrates a swimmer’s big moments on the spot is fantastic! My son was so surprised the first time he moved up a level, and it meant a lot to him.”
• “Big Blue’s focus on building confidence in the water is important, and we see it happening with our kids. My oldest son took lessons somewhere else, and his first time in the pool required him to jump in the water. He hated the sensation of that. The way Big Blue builds trust and confidence with kids is really special.”
• “We love that the staff is everywhere and knows everyone! The swim instructors know my family’s names, and the names of all of the families coming and going! You get a sense that they truly care about you!”
• “My boys are always excited to go to swim lessons. There has never been an occasion when they didn’t want to go to Big Blue.”

Magda also said she appreciates the cleanliness of the pool and the lobby area, the size of the changing rooms, and of course, free parking!  But, her kids will tell you it’s all about the trains and lollipops!

When Magda’s not at swimming lessons with her kids, she may be teaching a Fit4Mommy class or working on her line of clothing designed just for moms and moms to be.

An update from Magda from Los Angeles: “Oh how we miss our Big Blue Family! Funny enough, LA has a bus system called Big Blue, and right when we moved here the boys thought it was an ad for their favorite swim school! The boys still love swimming, and now that we have access to a pool in our building they have been practicing their water skills almost every day. We plan to sign Adrian up for competitive swimming once things open up here in LA. Shortly after we moved to LA, Julian (3) learned to swim under the water and is a lot more comfortable in the pool in general. I 100% credit Big Blue and your teachers with these accomplishments. Thank you!”