Teaching a child to swim

astonsmummy

Hi
Thanksd for all your replies, I've just found out that at our local swimming bath, if i take along proof of my benefits/tax credits i can get a pass which enables me and my son to use the pool for free at certain times of the day, so i think for now i will make use of that and take him once or twice a week.
Technically friday was his first time in a pool and i have to say, he took to it well, he was dubious but by the end he didnt want tog get out! :rotfl:
I'm going to have a look on ebay for one of the vests as i think it will be a great help.
I dont think i can get lessons any cheaper, but if it's £50 for 12 lessons i think that's quite a good price really.

Surfbabe, i live in Crawley about 5 min walk from the K2 centre x

Janepig

astonsmummy wrote: »

Hi
I have a son who is 4 in June, i'm ashamed to say that i took him swimming for the first time only on friday
I enquired at the pool about swimming lessons but it is £50 for a 12 weeks course and you have to pay upfront, things are a bit tight at the moment so i cant afford it, so i was wondering if i'd just be able to teach him myself?
I know it may sound like a thick question but i am not really a swimmer, last time i went swimming before friday was at the millenium in Barbados
Is there any guides out there or does anyone have any tips for me please, I feel so guilty that he cant swim or hasnt even been before, i've decided to take him at least once a week now. thnx x

Don't feel guilty AM - I constantly had friends calling me rotten for not taking DD swimming, but I'm glad now that I waited, because she went to a swimming pool for the first time on holiday last August at the age of four and a half, and despite being an all round scaredy cat she really took to it amazingly well, happy to jump in off the side, go under the water, etc.... so I took her for proper lessons afew weeks later in our local pool. I think it was about £22 for about 8 lessons, but I had to be in the pool with her. I was quite surprised at how nervy most of the other children were, and alot of them were on their third or fourth lot of lessons but still unwilling to get their hair or face wet. Anyway, DD passed the course and was able to move up to the next level of lessons, but I haven't booked her in yet - I think they start in May.

So don't feel guilty about not taking Aston yet - I did, but seeing how DD has turned out I don't any more. I think I may have done more harm than good if I'd taken her too soon. And I'm going to do the same with DS - DH tried him in the same pool on holiday last August and he bawled his eyes out and wasn't having any of it!!

Jxx

bylromarha

I've just borrowed this book from the library.

It's very good with lots of practical ideas of what to do in the water as pre swimming fun.

My son's 4 in august and we rarely get to the swimming pool, so don't be .

culpepper

Mine both learnt at 6 years old. I used to take them about once a week when they were little but I didn't try to show them swimming until they were 6.
The local leisure centre had a swimming club and I got them lessons there at about 7 years old. The swimming club was much cheaper than the swimming pools own lessons.

Zziggi

My local swimming baths does a block of 10 swimming lessons for £45. Each lesson is 30 mins long and there's about 12 kids in each class. They also do one-to-one classes for £12.50 per lesson. My eldest had two blocks of the class lessons (£45) but i noticed that he only managed to go across the pool about 3 times every lesson because of the number of kids in the class. ALso, because the teacher's attention was on 12 kids, i swear he was walking across the pool more than kicking anyway! I ended up going for the one-to-one lessons and i found that DS improved more in 2 private lessons than in 2 blocks of class lessons. £12.50 a week is expensive but worth it. The instructor gives DS her full attention and he gets ALOT done in 30 minutes.

Don't schools teach swimming now when kids are in junior school?

G30RG3

I Whould Suggest He Gose to them leassons With a few freinds What are like play swimming at same time of learning to do little stuff maybe not proper leasons but its what i did And i've never had a proper leason But then agian i dont want your child to drown for not noing what to do All the time while in the pool... Maybe get a set of the pool rules And teach your kid them may help...

G30RG3

Zziggi wrote: »

My local swimming baths does a block of 10 swimming lessons for £45. Each lesson is 30 mins long and there's about 12 kids in each class. They also do one-to-one classes for £12.50 per lesson. My eldest had two blocks of the class lessons (£45) but i noticed that he only managed to go across the pool about 3 times every lesson because of the number of kids in the class. ALso, because the teacher's attention was on 12 kids, i swear he was walking across the pool more than kicking anyway! I ended up going for the one-to-one lessons and i found that DS improved more in 2 private lessons than in 2 blocks of class lessons. £12.50 a week is expensive but worth it. The instructor gives DS her full attention and he gets ALOT done in 30 minutes.

Don't schools teach swimming now when kids are in junior school?

Yer in year 4 And for us we got the grumpy teacher who With 30kids in the little pool is kinda hecktic with the people who dont wanna swim peeing them selfs in the corner
i just freaked and said if i dont learn swiming Im probley gonna die of someons pee going down my trout (I wanted to swim in the deep end)
also if u dont a teacher with 6-12 kids is bad think ABOUT a trainer who has the same job to day everyday for the like 20 local schools?
+ s/he's Normle leasons what s/hes probley getting paid better to do...

Janepig

My primary school never did swimming lessons - my parents took me to lessons when I was 7. We used to have lessons in comp when I was about 13, but I would think that if you hadn't been to a pool before that then you'd struggle with school swimming lessons at that age.

Jxx

Nenen

Government target is for all children in KS2 (7-11 years) to be able to swim 25 metres by the time they leave primary school and schools are supposed to provide lessons in order to achieve this. However, every school has a different way of doing it, some start in Y2 or 3... some not until Y5 or 6. Some stop children going once they've achieved the 25 metres in order to let more non-swimmers go while other schools encourage the more able swimmers to swim competitively etc. It might help put your mind at rest to find out your ds' school policy.

I'd agree absolutely with the pp who said that the best thing you can do is help your son to be confident in the water, slowly encourage him to be able to put his face in by playing games etc. Then if/when he does have lessons he will be 3/4 of the way there already.

The other thing that occurs to me is that you could try and do the first stage of ASA swimming teachers course... if you are on benefits it might even be free. That way you could learn how to teach your son yourself! I did it years ago as an evening class and really enjoyed it... it even improved my own swimming style apart from anything else! It would certainly be worth investigating where/if you could do the course.

jacksons_mum

ive been taking my 2yr old swimming once a week for the past year or so and he has just taught himself to swim, i didnt have a clue about how to teach him - i just told him to kick his legs and move his arms, he did it and now he is quite a good swimmer. i would just say what others have said and take him regularly to get him used to the water and enjoy it, dont worry about teaching him to swim yet, just have a good time together in the water.

also my local pool attendant who is also an instructer doesnt recommend rings as it encourages them to be lazy or something like that!