In this episode we talk to Meg Faure, Occupational Therapist, co-author of 8 parenting titles including the best-selling Baby Sense and Weaning Sense books, and founder of Parent Sense baby app

We start with a deep dive with how our 8 sensory systems are massively important and how they are affected in water.

“The vestibular sense and proprioceptive sense, which are the critically important hidden senses are both very well targeted when we are swimming with our little ones.”

Meg talks to us from her from her sensory integration therapist and neuro developmental therapist background and relates her knowledge and experiences in the water and baby swimming. 

Meg has a way of conveying complicated ‘sensory science’ simply! Like the 4 sensory personalities.

“The most important part is the parent understanding her baby’s sensory personality.”

“Our senses provide the platform, each layer builds upon itself, the sensory systems are our base. When they become over stimulated, it can almost become a little fractured, so it means the next layer, emotional regulation, doesn’t have a good foundation.” 

It was a pleasure to talk to Meg about her life’s work supporting parents to help raise resilient, happy children. Check out her amazing books and new parent app: Parent Sense.

Let’s keep connected:

@aquasensory

Connect with Meg:

https://megfaure.com

In this episode we talk to Torill Hindmarch, recipient of the prestigious Virgina Hunt Newman Award for promoting the “Gentle Way” of baby swimming. It is always a pleasure to connect to our International Aquatic Community.

Torill, shares her passion and knowledge from her many years’ experience and her observations.

“In 1973 I was given the responsibility for a mother and child group in a pool where I was a swim teacher for the local schools, this was my first step on my journey in infant aquatics.”

In this episode we myth bust on some of our aquatic submersion misconceptions on the ‘dive reflex.’

“We want our babies coming to the water for pleasure, we don’t want to put them in a situation that activates a survival, which prepares it for something terrible, and the thing is that sits in the body, for some children it is very strong.”

Let’s keep connected:

@aquasensory

Connect with Torill:

Email: [email protected]

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/torill-hindmarch-1b336b35

At Aqua Sensory we love to connect with experts in their fields, like with Jess Kennedy from My OT and Me.

In this episode, Jo talks with Jess about supporting parents and professionals, understanding sensory integration, and supporting challenges in and out of the pool. One of the topics we talk about is ‘parent capacity’, about how much a parent can change, take on and how much external support they have.

“It’s important for everyone to become sensory aware, even if you are directly working with people as it is highly impactful on your emotional regulation on how you know how you relax, what triggers you, how to manage your own stress so I think the words sensory integration or processing almost became theoretical you have to be an in-depth practitioner to understand it, but absolutely not.”

“We all have sensory systems, differences, and preferences, it’s not just children. Although they may seek out certain types of sensory input more intensely, or for longer durations. We make adaption on what we have learned about ourselves and those adaptions help make it easier for us to cope in different environments.” 

Let’s keep connected:

@aquasensory

Connect with Jess Kennedy:

https://www.gabadoo.com

https://myotandme.com

At Aqua Sensory we love to bring more awareness into the pool of the words we say and how we communicate.

In this episode, Jo talks with Kate Burgess, a speech and language therapist who supports parents with early intervention and ways to be more effective in their communication. Kate’s passion is to simplify speech and language strategies for parents, in a simple and accessible way.

“You are absolutely right that face-to-face ability is fantastic, as being face to face is such an important part of communicating and it’s so easy with our little ones to forget how much higher up than them, we are most of the time. So, I love that swimming is giving that opportunity to be face-to -ace.”

“One of the things that can do is really try to slow it down how quickly you are talking to your child, it can be very easy as adults, as proficient communicators to get quite excited. Being in the pool together is exciting and your child is probably showing you new skills and little milestones and with that excitement can be really fast language and for a young child or baby that can be quiet challenging to process.”

Let’s keep connected:

@aquasensory

Connect with Kate:

https://www.instagram.com/wecancommunikate

https://www.wecancommunikate.co.uk

At Aqua Sensory we love to create sensory harmony in water and understand child development, we have a hold and move we call bear feet babes, so of course when I saw there was a book called Finding Their Feet - I was so drawn to buying it and reading. 

In this episode, Jo talks with the author Bernie Landels from Finding Their Feet about why bare feet is good for child development, how going barefoot can help children physically and emotionally too.

In the water, we are in the privileged position to always have bare feet, but maybe as swim teachers or for our swim parents we don't know about all the amazing benefits? 

Let's connect some dots together. 

Let’s keep connected:

@aquasensory

Connect with Bernie Landels:

https://bernielandels.com

https://instagram.com/findingtheirfeet

Kayleigh McDine runs Swim with Kayleigh a small swim school based in the Highlands of Scotland in a Seaside Town called: Nairn.

In this episode it was a treat to catch up with Kayleigh, to chat about her swim school, Bath Babies and Aqua Sensory adventures and her swim school, values: Community, individual learning, mindfulness and water safety.

“We used to travel over an hour to get to our nearest baby swim class, it was a whole day’s travel, so it was the highlight of my week. I have been teaching now for 7 years and recently relaunched my swim school.”

Let’s keep connected.

@aquasensory

Find out more:

https://swimwithkayleigh.co.uk

In this episode we talk to Deborah McNiels (M.Ed) Author, The First 60 Days & The Neuro-Nurturing®, Brain Insights Founder,  International Speaker  and Initiator of The First 60 Days Movement. Wow! Deborah is certainly a uniter of those that are making a difference.

Because the brain is so malleable by the experiences that they are having in the earliest days, weeks and months, early experiences matter. In water it is important to balance the sensory experience.

“We are born with about 86 billion brain cells and some of those brain cells are connected to one another, 9 months prenatally is not enough time for them to connect early experiences are so important.”

Let’s keep connected:

@aquasensory

Connect with Deborah:

https://www.braininsightsonline.com

Christian and Jo, co-creators of Aqua Sensory reflect their shared experiences and observations.

In this episode, Christian and Jo talk together about how we support our children and swim families more, to provide a compassionate supportive base. To have a ‘can do’ attitude and to cultivate a program that promotes ‘more presence and more opportunities to discover.’

We talk about what creating more wonder in the water and less labels like; the terrible twos, he doesn’t like this or that, lazy legs, he’s bored …. “

“In water we naturally can be more present with our children, the water is so crucial in providing more opportunities. But as swim teachers and parents, are we providing opportunities or taking them away?”

Let’s keep connected.

@aquasensory

https://aquasensory.com/

@christianwilsonauthor

https://instagram.com/christianwilsonauthor?igshid=MmJiY2I4NDBkZg==

In this episode we talk to Monika Anzueto International Swim Educator and Owner of the prestigious swim school founded by her parents Delfin de Chipas. It is always a pleasure to connect to our International Aquatic Community.

Monika shares her focus on global child development and aquatic skills as well as her passion for music in the pool to enhance the early years learn to swim journey.

“20 years ago I was thinking there must be a different way to do this, I have to be honest, I found myself doing a play list, in my swimming sessions, there must be something better to do.”

“We want to use music to relax our parents and to use music as an experience to learn, and to learn we have to be calm and happy and music can play a very important role.”

“Water brings an oasis of wellbeing, but we do have to be careful, we have to allow babies to gently get used to this new sensory input around submersions.”

Let’s keep connected:

@aquasensory

Find out more about Monika Anzueto:

https://www.aquaticity.net/

@aqua6citymonicaanzueto

In this episode we talk to Clare Stead, creator of the amazing parent app: Oliiki. We chat about why the first 1000 days a critical window. Why is understanding our child’s development important, and the big question, why is it good to support child development from the start, rather than fixing issues later.

Tune into some amazing facts like; “A child’s development at 22 months old, predicts their academic success at 26 years old.”

When you find out what Oliiki stands for, you’ll soon connect the dots to why we share passions.

Oliiki:

Observe closely

Listen to what your babies are saying

Investigate their interests

Initiate conversation

Kindle connection

Instil a love of learning

Supporting child development doesn’t have to be complicated.

Let’s keep connected.

@aquasensory

Check Out The Oliiki App:

https://www.oliikiapp.com