Pods Swimming

2013 Special Award of Recognition

Pods Swimming orginated in 1996 as the Ocean State Squids Learn to Swim program at Brown University.  Coach Susan Pascale joined Squids in 1996 and Jamie Pascale in 1999.  The program focused on teaching children proper stroke technique at a young age.  When the Brown University pool closed for the fall of 2007, Pods separated from Ocean State Squids and became its own school.  Currently there are over 1,000 children enrolled in the program.  They are the first Rhode Island based swim school which is a member of the United State Swim School Association.

Pods swimming teaches infants and toddlers to be happy and comfortable swimming.  They learn to hold their breath underwater.  This will teach them not to panic and ingest water in an emergency situation.  Pods also teaches students to swim-float-swim; emphasis is placed on swimming forward, rolling to their backs for a breath, holding a float, and then rolling back to their stomachs.  This teaches children life saving skills they will need in emergency situations.  These skills also serve as the foundation for the Pods skill progression.  They are the foundations for children to learn the basic swimming skills and for them to progress into proper stroke technique.

The goal of Pods Swimming is to have children learn to be comfortable in the water, learn proper stroke technique at the earliest age possible – Keeping Safety as the top priority.

The Hall of Fame commends the Pods Organization in their efforts to teach children how to swim and be safe in and around water.