COVER STORY

In the Swim in SPRINGFIELD

Aquatics for Those 4 Months & Up!

By Deborah Schapiro, photos by Dan Epstein

For Jeffrey and Larisa Posner, things are going swimmingly in all senses of the word. The husband-and-wife team recently opened the Goldfish Swim School in Springfield, building on the success of their four-year-old Livingston facility.

Unlike traditional swim classes that offer fixed start and end dates, Goldfish Swim School offers an ongoing, perpetual lesson model. This allows children to begin at any time and progress at their own pace.

Goldfish Swim School instructors are highly trained in The Science of SwimPlay®, the school’s proprietary curriculum, which uses play-based learning to build life skills in and out of the water. The majority of Goldfish students are first learning to swim, but the school also offers upper-level classes and “Swim Force.” This is their non-competitive team, where advanced swimmers spend an hour practicing their strokes across the whole length of the pool.

Like its sister facility, the Springfield Goldfish Swim School offers swim instruction to children from four months through 12 years old. Up until age two, the children are in the pool with a parent or caregiver. At age two, they may or may not be separated from their adult, depending on individual readiness. From ages three and up, the children have group lessons; the student-teacher ratio of no more than 4:1 allows for plenty of attention. Classes are 30 minutes long.

Jeffrey and Larisa Posner

The physical plant is an impressive 8,550 square feet, with a state-of-the-art water purification system and rigorous Covid-safety protocols followed. Other facility highlights include individual changing rooms, a blow-dry station, a snack bar, retail shop, and warm, tropical décor. The pool temperature is also quite warm—a shiver-free 90 degrees. Parents and caregivers are welcome to watch their children in the air-conditioned viewing gallery.

In addition to swim classes, the Goldfish Swim School offers weekly family swims and party packages. While the primary focus is small-group instruction, a limited number of private lessons are also offered.

Larisa notes, “As the parents of three kids and the owner-operators of two premier swim schools, we are passionate about swim instruction and water safety in general. Drowning is the number one cause of death among children under four, which is why we offer free water safety presentations in schools, preschools, churches, daycare facilities, and street fairs.”

Since opening their first Goldfish Swim School in 2017, the Posners have taught literally thousands of kids to swim. Jeffrey says, “It is such a rewarding feeling to know that children are learning to be safer in and around the water.”

Goldfish Swim School

275 U.S. 22 East, Springfield | 973-671-5544 www.goldfishswimschool.com/springfield

Jeffrey and Larisa Posner and Tiffany Schroeder