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What to expect when your child is Learning to Swim. I have a rule my kids must learn to swim. Here are my recommended ages and ideas on your kids learning to swimming. FACT: 2nd leading cause of accidental death of kids under the age of 14 in the US. 10 kids a day die due to drowning. Also a main reason for me, my parents and in laws live near lakes and ponds. I have pushed the issue of swimming the 1st sport my kids had to learn, no soccer, or t-ball till they had knowledge in the water. Not only is swimming a safety issue but it is a great sport for a lifetime. You can swim from a year till you are 100+.
So a few years ago I wrote my safety tips on swimming. I urge you to read it.
This year my 8 year old daughter has found her swimming ablity, a parent it is lovely to watch. My son 12 who as been swimming for year took the spring session off of swimming but admitted to me last night that he misses the regular exercise and being in the water.
When you child becomes a regular swimmer several things happens:
- Routine they swim on a regular basis they come to expect it
- Water confidence but also a respect for the water – realistic fear of water
- Improves on concentration: Swimming is a sport where you have to concentrate or you drown
- Swimmer make better students Studies have show that on average swimmers had a better grade point average then other sports
- Self Reliance you are competing against yourself and others to get a better time. You are against yourself ultimately
- Caloric intake goes up at 1st then slows down over time.
The best way to really get a kids swimming is not the weekly lessons at the YMCA. Where as they are great to get your child familiar with the water and hour 1/2 week will not make a strong swimmer anytime soon it is fine for under 4 years of age. If you can find a local summer program like at a local pool, that has lessons every day and you follow through on a regular basis with will stick for a lifetime.
What to expect when your child is Learning to Swim:
Swimming age 1-2 years What to expect: I promote my child / baby getting in the water and going under for an early age. My daughter started getting dunked at 15 months by one of the life guards. She held her and made it a game- Lots of smiling. The result my daughter never was scared of putting her face in the water knowing it would come out. Also if you get in the water they love it with you.
Swimming age 3-4 What to expect: Make sure they kick on the wall and blow bubbles in the water continue to be use to the water. Get that face wet- super important. (Don’t to this—>) I tried to get my kids to float .. yea it just kind of freaks them out. Let the kids get familiar with the water on there terms .. Do Not force because they will not progress. Tip: buy your child Swim Goggles they make a child love to swim because they can see underwater.
Swimming 4-5 years What to expect: Start a more independent swimming and don’t expect greatness. Very few kids total get it right away. I found many parents think (including me) there kids are great and can do it and push quickly. The kids say I can do it and become disruptive in swim class. Listen to the Swim Teacher and take the ques from them. Because the know how to teach swimming. The best thing is to spend as much time at the pool as possible.
***In My Opinion: before your child goes to Kindergarten they are great at everything, at least as a parent I thought he could do everything my little angel and he was the best .. then Kindergarten and reality sets in, your kids is great at somethings? this is true with your 1st especially your 1st.. I hate to say it I can always spot a that Parent. Last Year I watch a little girl struggle in a class that was above her level , because Dad thought she was/needed to at that Level. The Swim Teacher said she need to be at a lower level, the Dad said The swim Teacher was wrong, forcing the girl and teacher. The little girl disrupted and cried the entire class. Taking away from the lesson from the other children. So listen to your teachers.
Swimming 5-6 Kids What to expect: What to expect might be progressing on the basic stokes Crawl (aka Freestyle) and Breast stroke (back and fly are harder) . Breathing and learning how not to stop and stand while take breath is the hard part. Also some kids get the arms then struggle moving the feet. Girls tend to progress quick then the boys, They seem to be more coordinated with arms and feet moving at the same time. Again look to Swim Teacher. This is the time that most kids will try to jump off the diving board. They will be concerned with the deep water. Most swim teaches will catch the children.
Please note my son hated going off the Diving board (I did push the diving board thing-I am no saint) My son fought for a very long time , he did not get the rhythm (of not touch the ground) or go off the till right before 1st grade late Aug. My son also swam underwater for a very long time(holding his breath) , the breathing was a major issue.
Swimming Ages 6-7 What to expect: They really start to get things going, swimming forward, The children start to understand concepts and try to do them some kids will start really moving forward. They are confidant in the water.
My daughter started swim team at this point (after 1st grade) wanting to be like her older bother.. yea she was slow to cross the pool and I think the life guards were on pins and needles when she swam thinking she was going to drown (she would flail her arms and would not move forward when doing the crawl.) She was very determined to make it. I did ask if she could switch to breast stroke because they breath on every stroke making swimming easier. She went from 1.5 minutes to cross the pool with in a month she was able to cross the pool in 38 seconds.
Swimming ages 7-8 What to expect: This is the Sweet spot age the kids really start to get it. They are confidant and willing to learn. They have a need to do better and want to improve. Expose them to the water and you will find amazing things happen quickly. I call it when things “Click” they learn how to control their bodies. If you kids has not started swimming make sure they start at this age because the have the best attitude to learn, swiming that does not come easy for some, and it takes time.
Swimming ages 9-13 What to expect: This is when I find the girls can fly in the water compared to the boys they are more coordinated and better listeners. Also 11-13 year old girls look like they are years ahead of the boys, because many girls start to develop with puberty. There male swimmers who are standouts ..but the boys tend to screw around more, they splash each others an rough house. Also for some reason boys spit water on each other (gross). Then 11-12 boys they get it and focus more.. After 13 they are developing it is fun to see the dramatic change that happen with boys in the pool.
I have learned from my kids I such as I should never teaching my kids how to swim. It is best if the Swim Teachers and Coaches teach them. (I learned when my son was 5 – when he said Mom I can do it and shut me down) I felt it was best to leave the professionals to do it. I just provided praise and support. I made sure they had oprotunity to learn. I have spent many years sitting by a local pool. I am not an expert except years of watching a learn with my kids.
Next week: be sure to check out my post “So your Kid want to be on swim Team? What to expect”
I also want to add if you are looking for Swim gear for your self or your kids check out swimoutlet.com they have the best prices around. I find my favorite Place to Shop On Line for Swim Gear is SwimOutlet.com the prices are the best and they have anything a swim family will need.
Thanks for the tips. I’ve been wondering what to expect from a swim lesson.
Jeannette- Just step back and let the teacher do it. The kids when not in class work on it. Don’t push .. I did with my 1st and it was a struggle. But now he is a competitive swimmer and like the exercise. Something I have struggled with.
Also invest in many many goggles. That and getting their face wet is king.
This was SUCH a huge worry for me, because I can’t swim. (Stupid phobia thing.) One took special ed lessons, one teachers herself, while Mom makes sure that Dad is there because I’m useless! Now that I have one virtual fish and one who is pretty well trained, I can’t wait to get them into special olympics 🙂
Gina, we have several kids on our team who have special needs and they swim at the same meets with everyone else. Both our Winter Swim Team and Summer Local Pool team have kids with special needs ablities.
What is really cool is the teams are from little kids 5 years up to HS and everyone cheers everyone on. It is the one sport where you see a varity of ages in kids in the same place. Many a “big kid” has cheered my son on and watched out for him on away meets and lockrooms.
So if one of your girls a swimmer, and they want to swim regularly do look in to local swim teams, since many go at there own pace it is a great sport for all.
This is one area where I feel like I failed as a mom. I did take my oldest to swim lessons, and then when the other 4 came along, we stopped because I couldn’t go in the men’s locker room with him, and he couldn’t come in the women’s locker room with me. Very frustrating! Then, my sil kept pointing out to me every.single.summer. that my kids can’t swim. Really? I’m not clueless. ARGH!
So…we’re signing up for a local swim club. I think the 9 year old will be happy with lessons. The 7 year old will be more comfortable this year, and open to lessons. I’m not sure about my daughter, and I’m hoping that my 5 year old will overcome his fear of the water, not helped by the same sil’s son grabbing at him at a pool causing him to fall. Yup, got some issues! 🙂
Barb, relax they will get it this summer. The more tie at the pool the better. The kids will make summer friends that will help you kids feel comfortable at the pool. They are not babies so most likely they all can reach in the shallow area. The local pools have to have a certain number of life guards for insurance reason.
Do as many lessons as possible, and by the end of the summer your fears will subside. Be sure to let me know the progress. I am excited for out to commit to such an import skill for kids to learn. Like I say time and time again get good goggles because kids get frustrated when water hurts the eyes.
We’ve been struggling with swim lessons. My kids love the pool but we can’t find good lessons. The search continues this summer!
Carrie- our local town community pool offers lesson they are before the pool opens. We Pay $20 for 15 classes (crazy cheep) . I would check local through your township or local YMCAs. Also many life guards do privates or ask a local swim team if any of the students teach. You can also find certified teacher through teams.
Great info here, Sherry. As a parent, your whole world changes once your kids can swim comfortably.
Living near water, I am so scared that my kids can’t swim. They need to learn ASAP but I understand it’s age appropriateness that I need to focus on.
It is crucially important for people to learn to swim as children. It saves lives. I have my children signed up for swimming lessons.
Great information! We made sure the kids all took swim lessons (because we practically live at the beach) but my oldest can’t ride a bike. Dropped the ball on that one…
My son turns 6 in May and started swimming class at 3 & 1/2. He took 6 months to learn how to float at 30 minutes a week (1 class a week). The next step was swimming across independently a short stretch of the pool, not sure how many yards. It took him 9 months to achieve this milestone. He has been in his current level for 1 year & 1/2. To pass this level, he has to swim freestyle, backstroke, and butterfly with a solid understanding of all strokes across the pool. At the beginning of 2013, he set a goal for himself to get to the next level and he worked his little heart out during the year and didn’t reach the goal. Each time he was “tested” the teacher kept on saying that he was almost there. We talked about how some goals take more work and that you can always roll-over new-years resolutions. We are entering April and he is still “almost there.” I was convinced that it was due to the high turn-over of the instructors at his school, but part of me wonders, is it just that swimming isn’t my child’s strength? Should start encouraging him to try a new sport and leave swimming? I can tell he is frustrated about not passing and he tries so hard that it breaks my heart. Yet, he doesn’t say he wants to stop, but I am not sure if I should intervene and tell him it’s ok to change and he hasn’t given up by changing his goal. Or should I continue to praise him (like I always do) and celebrate his effort and continue to take him to classes? He doesn’t ever seem overly excited to go to classes, but he never protests either. He has been doing it for so long that I think he just thinks, this is part of our regular routine. I have been really struggling with this issue and want to do the best for my child’s self-esteem. I too love swimming as a sport and feel that it is super important for kids to swim in Florida and that it is such great exercise. Not sure what to do… Thanks so much for the tips.
Dear When to give up, My son took forever for him to get it then one day it clicked. Your son is still young 6 years old is very young – above I say that 5-6 is the crawl or breast stroke. I do think where your son is at with swimming is completely age appropriate. Sounds to me like the teachers are not realisting on what a 5-6 should be doing.. not every kid is a swimming phenom.
I think wanting him to pass a swimming stroke at back stroke or butterfly at the age of almost 6 is a lot to ask a boy. . In my experience Boy are not as coordinated, there arms are all over the place.
Living in Florida (as I once did) it is a huge part of the lifestyle, so I would keep with it. I think if he was able to get in the water more frequently like a camp where daily exposure you will see a drastic difference. Again, I do think where he is at with swimming is completely age appropriate for his age.
So I would not quit.
My son was 7 1/2 before he swam in the deep end, he at age of 13 currently win awards in back and breast and started on a water polo team 2 weeks ago.
You are doing find Mom Keep up the encouragement your Boy is doing great. Swimming is a life sport.
Thank you for the great tips.
This is such a great resource! Pinned it so I can read it later – Thanks!
Great tips for age expectations. My grandson swims like a fish and is very comfortable underwater swimming. He started with YMCA lessons, then just gained confidence each year in the pool. He also had his hero, Uncle TJ, to watch and aspire to swim like him. Baby steps. But by age 7, he was a little fish! Still strictly supervised, but so very comforting to know he could manage on his own.
He had lessons at the YMCA at age 3. But it still was quite a while to get the confidence in his own mind. No forcing!
Great advice on how to handle swimming.