DolFUN SWIM Academy — Local services in Portland

My 5 and 7 year olds have been taking swim lessons here for the past many months, and we're delighted by their progress. As a former competitive swimmer and someone who coached swimming and taught lessons for over a decade, I'm overall really impressed with their approach. Yes, they did ask if I'd write a reivew today after I was sharing how delighted I am with my kids progress; no they didn't compensate or coherce me into writing this novel.

Prior to starting here, we tried me teaching them, the parks and rec classes, and the other pricey private group in town that enrolls in 8-class sessions. My working with them got us a ways, but wasn't ideal. The parks and rec classes were a bit ridiculous in my opinion - really untrained instructors making up lessons as they felt like it, not coached in child development or in how to actually teach swimming. They'd just say "do this, go". And the other private place has a "they'll gain these skills in these 8 classes or your next classes are free" policy which results in instructors pushing kids hard. Their instructor held my fearful then-4 year old under water for 10 seconds becasue a 10-second submerge was one of the targets for the class and DEEPLY scarred him. In another few seconds I would have been across the pool and yanking him away - you NEVER hold a kid underwater against their will! It's taken nearly a year of classes and swimming together as a family to get him past a really active fear of water on his face.

All of that in comparision with DolFun swim classes: If you're looking for a class that gets kids mimicking competitive strokes quickly, this isn't it. If you are looking for classes that will teach your kids how to save their own lives in the water and how to be in deep water for long-periods of time safely, this is your jam. My 7 year old has gone from comfortable in the water and able to propel through the water for maybe 15 feet and then run out of steam and be in trouble if in deep water - unable to actually swim - to being able to float indefinitely, being comfortable recovering to the surface from being 5-8 ft under water. My 5 year old has regained joy in the water and is slowly and gently being guided towards submersion and floating.

I tell my kids all the time that "swimming" is not actually doing competitive strokes a certain way. Swimming is being able to safely be in the water - having a true understanding of what you're capable of and how to recover in the water and get yourself out of the water when you don't want to be there. In my career as a coach, I saw too many kids say they could swim, who'd get far into a pool, fatigue and begin to drown. Yes - these classes can feel very slow moving if you're looking for kids to start looking like competitive swimmers. Also yes - they are regularly hiring new instructors (as is any place that does lots of hiring!). But when they hire new instructors, they actually train them over many weeks! Their policies around cancellations can feel really crappy - and, I remind myself that businesses still have to pay rent, insurance, staff, and gasp even the owners might need to have a survivable wage when a kid in class is sick or the weather makes roads unsafe.

I always want more communication, but that's my experience of my kids school teachers, after-care providers, and all adults that interact with them and I remind myself that they have SO many kids and famlies to engage with. Our experience with customer serivce when it comes to caring about my kids having a great experience and making progress has been great. The instructors are kind and care - and the ones that don't don't stay here - and the ones who stay seem to be continuously trained. The classes are not cheap, but they work. Their approach has transformed my kids relationships with the water and I am delighted and...

My year and a half year old has been taking swimming classes here for about a year now. She has a visible disability and I always have a mama worry about how people will treat her or assume of her capabilities compared to others in her age range. She has had 3 instructors and every one of them have been amazing with her, have always assumed she was capable of a new skill and has successfully scaffolded to keep her well integrated with her peers when she needed it. I am so thankful that they treat her like everyone else in her age group and not left out or told she can’t be apart. It makes my heart soar to see her being treated like the amazing little human she is and I’m so grateful that they have done that repeatedly. They are so respectful and kind and I’m so glad that she gets access to this place! Bonus that all the other parents in our class are just as accepting and positive. I can’t recommend this...

Great swimming experience; not as great for price and/ or sick kids.

We had good experiences with all teachers, and my kids made progress. I was impressed. One negative is that lessons are only 20 minutes - so they feel pretty short!

My chief complaint is sickness/ COVID related - if you miss a lesson, they don’t offer makeups. You can get back half your money for a future month if you let them know in advance. It is frustrating and makes me worried that other families might choose to avoid the pain and financial loss by simply coming to lessons even while sick. I hope they can change this policy! We planned to stop for the summer and then return; after this last experience where we missed a lesson due to sickness, I don’t think we will be returning in the fall. If you plan to continue indefinitely, might not...