Swimming Tips From an Occupational Therapist

This guide was created to support both caregivers and swim instructors in teaching children who learn differently. It translates occupational therapy principles into simple, practical strategies that can be used in lessons, at home, or in community programs. Inside, you’ll find tips for supporting regulation, understanding sensory differences, breaking skills into manageable steps, and building confidence in the water.

These strategies are designed to help create safe, predictable, and supportive swim experiences where children can feel calm, engaged, and successful. Feel free to print, share, and use this resource to promote consistency between home and swim lessons. Collaboration builds confidence.

Learning to Put My Face in Water: A Sensory Social Story

Learning to Put My Face in Water is a social story designed to help children feel more comfortable putting their face in the water. A social story uses simple language, clear steps, and supportive visuals to explain what will happen during an experience and how a child can respond. It prepares children in a calm and predictable way so they know what to expect before they are in the pool.

This social story is especially helpful for children who may feel anxious, have sensory sensitivities, or need extra time to process new experiences. By reading it ahead of time, caregivers can introduce water skills in a low-pressure environment while building confidence and emotional readiness.

You can use this story before swim lessons, during bath time, or as part of your regular routine leading up to water activities. Reading it consistently helps children practice the language, understand the sequence of events, and feel supported as they try new skills at their own pace.

Social stories work best when paired with encouragement, patience, and co-regulation. The goal is not perfection but helping your child feel safe, prepared, and empowered in the water.

Feel free to print it out for free and let us know how it worked with your child!

Visual Supports for Swim Days

Above is a visual aid printout designed to make swim days feel less overwhelming and more predictable for both you and your child.

Each page includes both a blank template and an example version to help you see what it can look like in action.

The example is there as a guide, but the template is yours to personalize in whatever way works best for your child and your routine.

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The Cut-Out Icons

The first page includes visual icons organized in four rows. Each row serves a different purpose.

Blue Row: What We Need to Pack

The blue icons are all the typical pool items like bathing suit, goggles, towel, sunscreen, water bottle, and snack.

These are meant to be used before you even leave the house.

You can:

• Lay them out while packing
• Have your child help match the picture to the real item
• Move the picture once it is in the bag

It turns packing into something visual and predictable instead of rushed and stressful.

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Yellow Row: First Then Pool Activities

The yellow icons are for swim activities such as feet in the water, bubbles, noodle, swimming, jumping.

These can be used on the First Then board, to build out your pool day plan, or to help identify which activities your child prefers once you are in the water.

For example:
First bubbles. Then jump.
First practice floating. Then ball.

It gives structure without feeling like pressure. Your child can see exactly what is expected and what is coming next to reduce dysregulation during the pool day.

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Pink Row: Regulation and Choices

The pink icons are for regulation and support.

You will see things like take a break, deep pressure or hug, movement, headphones, and My Choice.

If your child feels overwhelmed, overstimulated, or stuck, you can show them the different regulation options and choose one together. This allows you to co-regulate instead of escalating.

You can also build regulation into the swim time itself. Adding small regulation moments throughout pool activities helps keep their nervous system calm, supported, and ready to participate.

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Purple Row: Positive Reinforcement

The purple icons are for celebrating effort with activities like high fives, sticker chart, thumbs up, toy box and my choice reward.

These are meant to reinforce bravery, trying, and participation throughout the swim lesson.

The goal is to build confidence in the water, one small win at a time.

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Items Needed for Pool Sheet

This page helps with the actual packing routine.

It separates:
Items we need
Items we grabbed

You can use it weekly to create consistency. The more predictable swim days feel, the safer they feel.

You can place all the necessary pool items on the “Items Needed” side using the visual cues. As your child packs their bag, they can move each token to the “Items Grabbed” section once it is inside.

This allows them to take ownership of the routine, build independence, and feel more in control before you even leave the house.

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First Then Board

This board visually breaks down swimming into manageable steps.

Examples included:

• First goggles → Then play with ball
• First feet in water → Then noodle
• First bubbles → Then jump
• First swim practice → Then My Choice

When to use:

• When introducing a new skill
• If your child is hesitant
• To support behavior regulation
• To encourage participation

How to use:

• Clearly show the “First” activity
• Immediately follow through with the “Then” reward

Pro tip: Let your child choose the “Then” activity. It makes a huge difference in motivation.

You can say something like, “My choice is ___” for the First activity and “Your choice is ___” for the Then activity.

It keeps things structured, but it also shows them you’re doing this together. It turns it into collaboration instead of control, and that small shift can completely change the tone of the swim day.

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Time and Activity Schedule

This page shows a simple swim day flow:
Put on bathing suit
Pack bag
Drive to pool
Play
Get dressed
Drive home

This is helpful for children who ask “what’s next?” or have difficulty with transitions.

Before you even start getting ready for the pool, you and your child can sit down together and build the schedule using the icons.

You can make it feel simple and collaborative by using the “my choice, your choice” language when deciding the order. It keeps structure in place but still lets them feel included.

If you do this the night before, they can actually see what the swim day will look like and when things are happening. Being part of that planning process can really increase buy in, reduce hesitation, and help them feel more confident because they know what to expect.

Making Your Own Visual Tokens

The second page in the packet includes blank boxes so you can create your own visual tokens with your child.

You can choose a photo online or upload one into Canva, place it inside the box, print it, and cut it out. I highly recommend laminating them, especially if they are going to be used around water, so they hold up over time.

This gives you the flexibility to add visuals that are specific to your child, your pool, or even other parts of your routine outside of swim time.

Let us know how they work for your family and if there are other types of visual templates that would be helpful to create.

Caregiver Reflection Journal

Swim lessons are about so much more than skills in the water. They are about confidence, regulation, connection, and growth for both you and your child.

This Caregiver Reflection Journal was created to help you pause with intention before and after each lesson. Tvhe pre lesson page guides you through a quick child check in and caregiver mindset reflection so you can enter the water feeling prepared and grounded. The post lesson page helps you notice strengths, track progress, reflect on strategies that worked, and identify what to focus on next.

Small shifts in awareness create big impact over time. This journal is here to support you in feeling more confident, more empowered, and more connected throughout your swim journey.

Additional Caregiver Support Resources

Support doesn’t stop at water safety; these resources can help navigate healthcare, education, recreation, and community supports by connecting you with trusted, family-centered resources that may be helpful for you and your family.

These organizations are not affiliated with The Sunfish Method, but are shared as optional resources that families have found helpful. Availability may vary by location.

For more information, click the organization’s name to visit its website.