Review I'm not…read moregoing to say this class worked, because it did not. Out of the nine kids in the class, the only ones successfully able to go across the pool and get themselves out of the water, were two kids, ages 6 and up. None of the other kids could get from the point of entry in the water, to the stairs on their own. In addition, about 25% of the class was still crying on day 5. I don't believe it is success if 80% are being assisted in the water on day 5, and 40% of the class is still screaming. My child included. After being tossed into the pool and submerged under water over and over, it did not "click" for my children. While this class is sold as teaching your kid to survive, and getting themselves out of the pool, there were zero times my two children were able to do so without the teacher's help. While her website states, "some children may need more than one session due to motor skill development," i don't think the majority of our class's inability to grasp this skill was due to their motor skill development. I write this review to encourage parents to think of their child's temperament and previous water experience before signing up. They will be thrown into the water, by you, over and over, and they will be forced to be submerged by the teacher. And they will scream. My children did not take kindly to this. I had to ask my husband to take off work on the second day to assist me in maintaining my sanity in the class. Keeping a positive persona to my children, while enduring screaming all around, while also, being responsible for ensuring my kids exited the pool, was not a one woman job. This is NOT a skills class. The fundamentals of kicking and holding your breath are not covered. It was after my two year old inhaled so much water over and over that she belched repeatedly to the point of almost vomiting, that I realized I needed to do the instruction myself. Maybe that was on me, I'll take that. It was also after Ms. Cathy repeatedly yelled "kick" at the kids and no one did, that I realized, oh I have to teach my kids that on my own. Happy to do so. But why did I pay $450 to realize I had to do all the basics in order for this class to "work?" Parents, know what you're getting into. If your child has little experience swimming, and all they've ever done is play in the shallow end of a pool, it will behoove your sanity to work on kicking and breathing A LOT before doing this class.

Life-Changing Swim Lessons! Ms. Cathy's swim lessons have…read morebeen a game changer for our family. Our 3-year-old started off hesitant and tearful at his first lesson--but that quickly changed. In just four days, he was swimming the length of the pool, jumping in, and confidently saying, "I got this!" His confidence grew with every lesson, and so did our peace of mind. Ms. Cathy's confident, structured approach truly works. We can't recommend her enough!

Disappointed that they only have 1 class a day,which is 7:30 in the morning. Too early for a lot of…read morepeople. The class is given before the pool is opened to the public.

We absolutely love coming here with and without the kids. Kids love to play and slide & I love…read moreswimming laps for exercise.

Clean water, good instructions from staff, but I cannot get over why they instruct the kids in the…read morefurthest lanes away from the viewing area. You simply cannot see your kids swimming without binoculars. It defies logic.

Waterloo has been a great experience all the way around. Staff are friendly, helpful, and…read moreaccommodating. Lessons provide the perfect level of challenge for consistent growth. Plus, this is one of the few swim schools in Austin that has a comprehensive adult curriculum. I look forward to coming here every week. Margo T. has especially been a fantastic instructor to learn from and I'm grateful for her resourcefulness and expertise. She coaches with kindness and encouragement, and she puts in extra time to find new drills for me that target my weaknesses. She is attentive in the pool and always has great feedback that helps me improve quickly. I'm so grateful for Margo and the entire Waterloo team for providing a fun and effective learning environment for adult swimmers.

Caitlin is Ah-Maze-Ing!!!! My daughter has advanced so much so fast during this summer. I will…read moredefinitely continue to see Caitlin every summer until my daughter swims like a fish. My daughter enjoys her lessons and enjoy Caitlin even more.

Caitlin has changed our lives! We have a pool, and my four year old wouldn't even put her head…read moreunder water until she started working with Caitlin. Now, she swims like a fish! We are so appreciative! She focuses on safety, and teaching the kids how to get out of their own pool if they fall in. That's extremely important to us. We can't wait for Caitlin to teach our three year old next year. She's really the best!!!

If you care about the wellbeing of your child or children stay clear of this gym. If you advocate…read morefor your child, stay clear of this gym. If you want your children spending long periods of time in an unhealthy training environment with a head coach "god complex" ego, then look no further.  I cannot speak for Crenshaws after school program, camps, or palestra program, but if you're looking for an Optional or Compulsories training program here's my honest review.  We first started noticing issues with the constant change in coaching staff. In the last three years we've seen 2-3 coach changes. The latest newest edition being the worst. They bark orders at the girls and offer put downs when there is no delivery. My daughter felt this coaching style began to rub off on the other coaches. We were met with many meltdowns after training due to this specific coach. Hysterical crying and shaking. If you directed concerns to the head coach your child would be blamed for bringing this response on. We noticed over our tenor here that our daughter was scared and intimidated to communicate. Not to us as parents but to the coaching staff. She feared retaliation from her coaches. If she was interested in attending a gymnastics college summer camp with her peers, they would all be terrified to to mention it due to how the coaches would respond. Of course, you'd think attending a college gymnastics camp would be encouraged - it's not. If my daughter suffered an injury, she did not want to mention it to her coaches, scared of how they would treat her or push her to train on the pain. If my child was running late to practice, she was terrified to communicate her occurrence. This all goes against USAG Safe Sport Policy.  This gym says "family" is their mantra but that's a lie. It's the head coach's idea of family. He feels he owns your kids once they join the team. He acts as their father, at least what he thinks is a father. It's by far the unhealthiest part of this facility. He cancels parents and does not allow parents inside the gym. There are no windows to observe your children, there are no seats or seating within the gymnasium that welcome parents to watch practice to ensure your child's safety. You're told you're welcome to pull up a chair when you first join but this is not true. Most parents when we ask questions are met with snarky comments, attitude, pettiness, unprofessional responses, or no response at all. This is no way to conduct business. Your kids are bred to have their own communication with the coach that does not pertain to you. This means if your kid suffers from anxiety or depression, it will only worsen because the head coach does not want you as an adult to protect the child and speak adult to adult. Coach to parent. I'm all for children learning to communicate and advocate for themselves in a healthy manner but this is not that.  He's most comfortable texting your youth or adolescents. He rather hear from your kid how they cannot attend practice because you as a parent have a conflict, planned a family vacation, or other plans etc, so he can punish your child for your decisions or hold them accountable for something that does not pertain to them. This is just a toxic form of control. Over our time here we met with the head coach,Adam Miller, numerous times to discuss our concerns or issues as concerned parents. Each discussion showed more and more how he does not like to take ownership for his wrong doings. He would constantly point fingers at the children. During each discussion instead of being met with concern or willingness to change, we were met with communication that said, "Maybe this isn't the gym for you all". We were always told in so little words to just get out and our daughter was indispensable. This is not a family.  Our daughter was always pulled to the side and addressed about various things without our knowledge. She's 14 and unable to comprehend all conversations yet the coaching staff assumed or assumes these young gymnasts are adults, they're not. Every conversation she had without an adult present bred toxicity. She was being bullied, coerced, and always accused of wrongdoing. She was left feeling isolated and alone. All parts of their toxic control they like to flex.  In the end, I had to ask my daughter if this were a relationship would you stay? She told me no. I asked why, and she said because she's constantly manipulated, always accused that everything is her fault, and voiceless.  Overall, the head coach is unwilling to welcome healthy change. He rather continue with the same traditions that have led to years of gymnastics, toxic culture and adolescent abuse.  If you want to feel targeted and enjoy being disrespected, this is a place for you.  I would not recommend this gym to anyone.

Great classes water aerobics my favorite friendly staff. Children's programs are excellent.read more

I had three children in the Lost Creek Aquatics swim team program. Unfortunately, in December 2018…read morethe head coach Janet Risser was terminated. Janet was an awesome coach. TheMy children no longer wanted to swim. Feedback was not solicited from the parents or swimmers. We are looking at other options for our remaining swimmer. Would not recommend under the current management and administration.

Our experience so far at Emler has been A++. I was a private swim teacher for 10 years so I'm…read moredifficult to please (even though clearly, I have limitations teaching my own kids which is why we're here LOL) and in general, I have been really hesitant about group lessons. And ...I definitely can see how they might not be for everyone. However, WOW! Emler has a methodology that really works - it empowers my kid to want to show me what he learned vs me pushing to level him up. Big dynamic shift and as a mom who wants to be fun in the water with her kids, not a "teacher", this is really valuable when we're practicing. More importantly, they have been incredibly accommodating with us as we juggled timing issues etc and have bent over backwards to ensure both of my kids get the most out of each lesson. All of the teachers we've had are excellent and the whole staff is just the bees knees

We are so happy we found Emler when our son was 2 because he was not progressing in the current…read moreswim class we were enrolled in. This class really pushed him to the next level and within 6 months our son was jumping into the water staying several seconds under water and floating on his back. He loves the songs and props and always talks about swim class and reenacts it at home. Jaide has been a phenomenal teacher, pushing the students just enough to get them to improve each week. She also knows when to be more sensitive when they are experiencing fear and needed to go easy that day, ultimately building trust with them. We have also had makeups with Sami, Bella, and Isaiah and they are also phenomenal with the kids. Such a talented team at Emler - you can't go wrong! Thank you for teaching 2 year old how to swim, float, and stay safe in the water.

With how many different kids come and go through the doors here, you would think it would be a…read moretotal mess. But you can tell, this place is run like perfectly planned chess match. Every person has a place to be. Managers walking around, double confirming and keeping additional sets of eyes on the water. Each teacher following a well defined script, they have thought of everything. We enrolled our son when he was 14 months and are nearly a quarter of the way through the 14 week semester. Each week, he has shown improvements, from ability to hold his breath to moving his legs under water. The instructors keep track of different metrics to make sure each kid continues to get better every week. Our class has 4 other kids, which has been the perfect number. We've been extremally happy with the Water Babies class at Emler.

TLDR: If you're with Emler for only 1 year, you will have to pay TWO years of 'annual' registration…read morefees. In terms of the swim lessons at this location, they've been great with my kids. We've taken them here on and off for about 7 years now since the kids were old enough to get in to the water. The instructors were kind and patient, and while there is a good amount of attrition, some of them have been there as long as we have. However, they (Emler as a company) started getting greedy in the last two years or so. What were free makeup lessons if you missed a class turned in to tokens you could purchase if you missed a class. They started instituting registration fees, which have only increased over the years. The final straw was the (currently) $40 *annual* registration fee we paid per child was not annual at all. They put a policy in place saying that annual registration fees are due on the anniversary month -- meaning if you register the children on the 30th of May, your registration has to be paid again on May 1st of the next year. Usually people are starting the schools whenever their classes start, which is not on the first of the month -- so after a year, they will attempt to charge you for the next year before the current season has even finished. It's fine if you plan on continuing, but not fine if you don't and just want to finish out the current season. In our case we were not going to put the kids in for the summer because they would be at a camp that had swimming in it. Emler still wanted us to pay for an annual registration fee, despite us having two more weeks before a full year had passed since our last registration, them only having 3 more weeks total left for the season, and with us telling them we did not way to pay for a year of registration when we knew the kids would not be there for 4 months. We opted to just withdraw the kids and we'll look for a different swim instructor after the summer is over. It's a shame that a 7 year relationship with them came to an end because of them forcing people register kids with less than 3 weeks left in the current season, even if they didn't need swim for the next season or two. All to get $40 more per child. I'm just happy I did not set my payments to auto charge my card or I wouldnt have noticed this.