Baby steps to swimming

KIM KIM FOSTER-TOBIN/KKFOSTER@THESTATE.COM

Kristen Reid, right, holds her son, Shawn Devlin, 2, as they listen to swim instructor Katie Brasier at the Greer Natatorium at Columbia College

• Gallery | Baby steps to swimming

“Scoop and kick, scoop and kick, scoop and kick!”

Swim instructor Katie Brasier repeats the phrase as she glides through the wading area of the junior Olympic-sized pool. The Greer Natatorium at Columbia College is filled with sounds of splashing and encouragement.

This recent morning, Brasier’s swim class has four toddlers accompanied by their mothers. The first day of each summer session, she tells the kids the pool is filled with ice cream. She sets them to the task of cupping their miniature hands and scooping it all out.

Two-year-old Shawn Devlin of Columbia isn’t buying it. He and his mom, Kristen Reid, above, listen to Brasier’s instructions before venturing off the wall.

“I probably should have put him in last year,” Reid says. “That way, he would have been acclimated to the water this year. He likes getting in the water, just not swimming.”

For the next 30 minutes, Brasier remains unfazed by the commotion around her. She stays on task, traveling from parent to parent, encouraging her students.

“Oh, my goodness! You made it! I think that deserves a jump. Do you want to jump?” Brasier rewards a toddler with a jump off the side of the pool into the water and her mother’s arms.

“We do a lot of kicking. We do a lot of jumping and getting the face wet,” Brasier says. “I like helping kids learn how to swim! It’s fun!”

— Kim Kim Foster-Tobin

kkfoster@thestate.com