Essential Swim Skills
& Learning Support
for Our Keiki

Safe and Confident — in the water and in life!

At Hi, Water! we accelerate learning using the powerful influence of the ocean!

We teach essential life skills using sensory and cognitive approaches that inspire kids to move with purpose, think clearly and feel a true sense of belonging. 

So whether you’re here for learning support, swim lessons or a little of both, you’ll find an encouraging environment where all children can thrive.

At Hi, Water! learning is natural, joyful and life-changing.

THINK

ACADEMIC SUCCESS

Under the surface skills for life long learning

SWIM

&

SWIM LESSONS

Confidence, safety, discovery

MEET

LESLIE COCHRAN, MPA

“I am interested in doing the deeper work - helping children expand their capacity for learning in ways that ripple out beyond the classroom. As a skilled and confident educator, I bring focus and care to every learning experience, and I enjoy partnering with families who share a vision of growth that looks beyond the limits of the system.”

Leslie Cochran is a Hawaiʻi licensed Special Education teacher with international credentials in aquatic safety, swim instruction and surf therapy. Leslie combines the best of her training and experience to design unique learning opportunities for her students to discover their potential in and out of the water.

ACADEMIC SUCCESS
Under the Surface Skills for Lifelong Learning

The ability to read, understand and think depends on a set of sensory-cognitive functions that live just below the surface of learning. These hidden building blocks - memory, attention, processing speed, visualization, reasoning and language processing - make all learning possible.

When children strengthen their sensory-cognitive skills, they unlock new pathways for learning, confidence and success - in school and in life.

Our academic interventions begin in the water and follow a simple framework - Regulate, Relate, Reflect. In the water, the body and mind are gently regulated and trust begins to grow. From there, we transition to land for an instructional sequence that develops the sensory-cognitive skills needed for reading, comprehension, or math.

Our unique process supports children who: 

  • Understand spoken language but can't yet read

  • Read words but struggle to comprehend or remember what they’ve read

  • Know their numbers but find math concepts confusing

  • Have trouble following conversations or instructions

  • Are navigating multiple languages

  • Feel anxious, frustrated or discouraged by learning

  • Would benefit from enrichment to extend and deepen their learning.

All of our instruction flows from proven, evidence-based practices, drawing on decades of research in sensory-cognitive development.

If you think your child is capable of more than what school is showing you - we think so too!  

Try our small-group community sessions, offered by donation, on Wednesdays and Sundays at the Pāhoa Community Center. Private sessions are also available.

SWIM LESSONS FOR KIDS
Confidence, Safety, Discovery

We teach children water competency - the ability to move safely and confidently in and around the water, to make good choices, and to enjoy every experience with awareness and respect.

Our lessons introduce the essential swim skills and just as importantly we teach children how to combine their skills so swimming becomes a source of safety, joy and discovery - inspiring a lifelong connection to the water.

Each lesson is specially designed to meet children where they are, honoring their sensory needs, communication styles, special interests and developmental readiness.

ADULT SWIM LESSONS
It’s Never Too Late to Feel at Home in the Water

Whether you’re learning to swim for the first time, refining your technique, or getting acquainted with Hawaiian waters, you’ll gain the confidence and the practical skills to make swimming a natural part of your life here in Hawaiʻi. 

Every adult swim lesson helps make free or reduced-cost learning available for local keiki through our Academic Success program. By swimming with us, you’re making real waves of change in our community! MAHALO!

CONTACT

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