Today I would like to introduce you to Kaitlin from An Apple Per Day. Kaitlin shares many posts on the topics of eco-friendly, healthy living. Today Kaitlin is sharing the importance of signing your kids up for swim lessons. So without further ado, here’s Kaitlin.
One of my kids is at the age when it’s time to sign him up for swim lessons. I made a mental note to do that next summer, until I talked to my good friend Katie. She was signing her kids up in the winter, and once I heard her logic – I changed my mind and did the same.
Don't wait! Sign up your kids for swim lessons! A guest post by @KaitlinGarder Click To Tweet
Kids and summer. If I looked forward to next summer, I knew my child would be like all the other kids – he’d want to be hanging out with his friends. They would want to spend time at the community pool. I remember when school let out when I was a kid. I ran home that day all excited about a whole summer with only play on my mind. If my Mom had mentioned anything with the word “lesson” in it, I would have rolled my eyes. I know my son will be the same way. Getting swim lessons out of the way before next summer makes a lot of sense. Here are some articles with great information about kids and swim lessons:
Swimming Pool Safety: Layers of Protection
Why Is It Important To Know How To Swim?
The school mindset. In the fall, kids fall back into the routine of listening to teachers. My son will be more receptive to what a swim instructor has to say. I went to a swim class last summer to see what it was like, and I do remember some of the kids seemed to wander and not pay attention at times. Swim lessons are too important for my son’s safety to have him staring off into space. In the fall, he’s likely to pay better attention. He will be in the habit of school, and that is a key element in having him retain what he is taught in a swim class.
The class experience. I looked at the signup sheets for lessons, and saw that there were fewer children on the list than the large summer classes. I asked an instructor, who confirmed that lessons were smaller and more orderly in the fall and winter. Since my child would get more individual attention from an instructor in a smaller class, I thought that was a definite advantage for fall lessons. My son can be pretty rowdy and rambunctious when he is around other kids, and with a smaller class, I thought it would be easier to keep him in line.
Check out the instructor. Not all lessons are the same, so I politely asked the instructor for his credentials. He was glad to comply, and said that was a smart idea. I watched him teach a class, and it was amazing how quietly he kept the kids in line. He had them really paying attention, and was obviously working from a plan. He didn’t move forward until all the kids understood what he was telling them, or could perform the move he was teaching them.
A lifetime skill. My children will be around the water many times in their life. We will go to the community pool together, he will be invited to swim parties, and we’re planning to take family trips to the beach. The skills to feel confident and comfortable around the water will be very valuable throughout his life. That’s why I’m not going to just do beginning lessons – I will sign him up each fall for intermediate and advanced lessons. I want him not only to know how to swim, but be thoroughly schooled in water safety knowledge.
I smile as I watch my child in his lesson, because he’s learning how to safely enjoy all the fun the water has to offer.
Kaitlin Gardner started An Apple Per Day to explore her passion for a green living lifestyle, and healthy family living. She and her husband have just moved to rural Pennsylvania, where they enjoy exploring the countryside to discover interesting and out of the way places. She is also learning how to paint watercolors.
I admit have been a bit lax on this since signing up Emma her first summer for lessons as my MIL got a pool and we have tried our best to teach the girls safety when we take them there ourselves, but hoping to change this and sign them up this summer for a program that offers this. So thank you for your advice and tips on this today ;)
Oh MAN, I don’t even want to think about Tessa in swimming lessons! My toddler had no fear of the water, at all, and it worries me! I am a weak swimmer, so I am a little uneasy in the water (especially in the ocean or lakes), but I want Tessa growing up confident in that element, so I’m gonna have to swallow MY fears and suck it up.. hehe. Great post. – http://www.domesticgeekgirl.com
This is one thing I definitely need to do! My boy is almost 9 and has not had lessons. I need to enroll them both!
Great article (and reminder), Kaitlin!
Our three year old starts her first swim lessons this weekend. Living in Seattle (and being surrounded by water), we feel that this is not something to delay.
Most toddlers are fearless around water and swim lessons help teach them to be confident, but also teach them to be mindful of the power it has. Another reason we chose to sign up in winter (other than the smaller classes), is because we can introduce her without the temptation of a summer sun and inviting ocean waves. :)
Great guest post, Kaitlin – going to check out your blog now.
Our daughter is in swim lessons, but does not love it. She has cried almost every lesson for 2 months. She likes the swimming but they also make them jump off the diving board and go down the slide and she hates her head going under b/c she doesn’t have the breathing down yet. I’m so torn about what to do. They are semi-private lessons so it’s a lot of money for her to cry every time. I think it’s so important for kids to learn to swim early, I just don’t know if we should stop and try later on (she’s 3 right now).
Too funny! I was just looking for swimming lessons for my kids last week :) We decided to do them in the winter at the aquatic center rather than the community pool. Our community pool is awesome, but the weather in Wisconsin is sketchy in the summer. It could be 50 or 100 degrees for swim lessons. Plus it gives us something to do during the long winter months. Great article and thank you for sharing!!
I agree! My kids are 12 and 7 and both know how to swim. Very important. My 7 year old learned how to swim last summer. She kept sinking and then finally something clicked.
Since we live on an island in the Pacific, water safety is very important to us. We introduce them to the water early and want them to have fun but we also make sure they know how dangerous the ocean can be if you’re not paying attention. Our kids wear puddlejumpers life jackets until they’re old enough to take swimming lessons, and the life jackets stay on until they’ve mastered swimming underwater and holding their breath. Since both my older ones have had their feet knocked out from under them by waves, they don’t question our rules when it comes to water safety.
Even if you’re not surrounded by water by water like we are, I would encourage parents to consider swimming lessons for their kids, for the peace of mind it will give you as a parent and the confidence it will give your kids when they master swimming skills.
Amber at OurCharmedLife.net
Thank you for this reminder. I have yet to sign my boys up for lessons, but this will probably be the year because they are 2 and 4, and the older one will only do stuff when the younger one is with him. We live in Phoenix so there’s definitely a lot of swimming happening here!
Those are good reasons to enroll kids in swimming lessons before summer. In Croatia, this is mainly handled in 4th grade just before spring break. Since my grandparents have a house on one of Croatia’s islands, I taught both of them to swim early on so they are good to go there, but I would definitely recommend teaching them before summer so they can fully enjoy once the summertime is here!
Timely! We’re going to the beach in just two weeks. My daughter’s friends have all taken swimming lessons and they have paid off.
We are.. way behind on that and my daughter wants to be able to swim with her friends.
There are some great local classes even in winter.
Swim lessons are soooooo important! I can’t wait to get back into a pool…great post and lovely to meet Kaitlyn!
I never thought about it, but starting swimming lessons in the winter really does make sense :)
As a former lifeguard and swim instructor I am naturally on board with this post! I think it is incredibly important to teach kids to swim from a safety perspective, and then on top of that it’s also just an enjoyable activity that’s great for fitness, physical literacy etc., etc, etc….
Great post!
Hi Kaitlin and Jennifer,
The summer is well and truly here in Australia – including the main school holiday summer break. This means that most kids are in the swimming gear, towel in hand, and hassling parents/relatives/random strangers to take them to the pool/beach/river right now immediately.
The “swimming culture” here is very much ingrained into our daily lives, given the vast majority of the population lives on the coast (ie Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth) and thus the beach is less than an hour away.
As a result, most kids – mine included – have swimming lessons at a very young age…. often before or at around the time they learn to walk. 5 and 6 year olds in most schools have swimming lessons.
This is the first summer I have been confident enough in their abilities to let my two daughters (11yo and 14yo) go to the river for a swim together without me. They’ve done it twice now, albeit with their older cousins.
And, now that they’ve got “swimming without mum or dad” out of their system, they are happy to have me come with them ! Which suits me just fine :-)
Thanks,
Matthew.
You are right. Swimming lessons are life savers. I don’t know how to swim myself but I will really love my kids to learn. My husband is so scared of swimming classes for our kids.
Thanks for your article it is a prompt reminder.
When I have kids, I will remember this! I do remember that I never had swim lessons when I was young and always wish I had. I eventually did learn how to swim, but wish I would have learned at a younger age.
I’m all about swim lessons- and in California, kids are getting swim lessons as soon as they’re born! So I’m a bit behind in that department. But it’s super important to make sure your kids are comfortable in the water. Everyone has a pool out here so it’s scary to think of what could happen if they aren’t prepared to swim.
I appreciate your tips! I think you’re right about not all teachers being the same. It’s important to find someone who has a lot of swimming experience, but that can also make your kids feel safe and at ease in the water. That’s at least the most important for my kids right now since they’re scared of the deep end.
I have a son that is wheelchair bound that we need to get swimming. All of my other children are able bodied and can swim quite well. I feel like if my disabled son could swim, he would feel more included. Additionally, that would be an extra great cardio workout in his situation.
Indeed, he would probably feel more included that way. I believe most places actually provide lessons for people with missing or unusable limbs. Have you gotten him swimming since you posted this comment? Does he seem to be enjoying himself?
Hi, Kaitlin! This is indeed a nice post! I wish to enroll my nieces and nephews in swimming classes asap but there isn’t one in our area. Anyway, I’ll just Google for some even in the next town. I have regrets for not learning how to swim at an early age, and so, I don’t want my little angels to suffer the same fears I have in the water. Cheers!
Yep, you’re right about the school mindset. My kids learn fast with their teacher. I have also noticed that they absorb the lessons effectively whenever they are with their friends. So, I recommend swimming lessons in groups. Xoxo.
With group swimming lessons, kids can learn faster. They won’t also feel any fear with their instructors because they are with their friends. The kids of the new generation are so lucky to have the opportunities to learn how to swim. I haven’t even had a chance to know how to swim so I am making sure my kids won’t feel the fears that I do.