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My in-laws have a pool and we use it very regularly in the summer. My son was actually a little afraid of the water, despite me being a fish. It took some effort but we got him into the pool on his own in one of the vests at age 3. This past summer we actually got the vest off of him and he was swimming on his own for short spurts. For instance, he would jump in and then swim back to the ladder. This year we aren't going to buy a vest and work more on the actual swimming.
My daughter turned 1 last summer and she is a fish just like me. We bought her a vest to try, but she didn't like it as it rode up on her. We put her in a set of arm swimmies and off she went. She would swim for hours if we let her. I think we are going to stick with the floaties again this year as I think they give you a better range of motion.
It's always a nice incentive to older brother when his little sister is cruising around the pool faster than him.
Oh, I'm learning a thing or two about floaties.... ;-)
I am not a great swimmer and was never a "fish" in the water so...
How do you you all feel about the vests? Is that belt thing ok for 3 yr olds or shall I remember that for maybe when she's 4?
The problem with the arm floaties, according to our swim teacher, is that they don't allow the right kind of movement for the arms to learn to swim right. I don't think it was a safety issue as much as a technique issue.
We used the swim belt starting at age 2 when we did "mommy and me" swimming at the YMCA. They like it because it holds the child in a swimming position, as opposed to an upright position like a jacket.
[quote=goodmanm;14425712]There's nothing wrong with them, if used properly.
I too have seen countless instances of toddlers in the water and parents seemingly more concerned about getting their tans.
At that age, if the kid is in the water (with or without flotation assistance), so should the parent.[/quote]
Exactly.
I didn't have any experience with the arm things--they weren't around when I was a kid, and so to me they just looked like another thing that somebody dreamed up to make money off of parents.
all my babies used the water wings. My oldest had absolutely no fear at all of the water. Was jumping off the diving board at 3. He could swim, but would tire before he was bored. He loved going under the water. Life jackets would prevent him from "blooping" (as he called it). I was always right there with him.
My younger ones (my DH's two) are more timid in the water. They were required to swim the length of the pool before they could go to the deep end by themselves (about 2nd grade for them) I did take the wings away when they could stand flatfooted. Of course all the "other, more cool, older" kids were at the deep end and with a noodle (and a parent or older, trusted teen) the little ones could go to the deep end.
The oldest of my DH's has sensory issues and he was beginning to become dependent on the wings. This is the biggest reason we took them away and taught him to use a noodle. Now every one of my babies are fish!!!
I have been around pools since I was born.
I've been swimming since I was really young, like 1ish...
I had no fear of the water.
I plan on being the same way with my kids.
I plan on buying a house with a pool BEFORE I have kids so we can learn at home etc and they'll be introduced to the water really early.
I think swimming lessons is a great idea but I am a swimmer and a trained life guard and I plan on doing all my kids swimming lessons myself.
I taught at the YMCA preschool and we started the children in swimming lessons twice a week as 3 year olds in the second half of the year. I taught the 4/5 year olds. Usually all the kids could swim the length of the pool without aid by the end of the year. The kids were between 4 and 5 years old. Some kids learn earlier, but in my experience, 4 is the optimum age because the kids are more influenced by their peers to put their faces in the water (essential).
My granddaughter learned a bit later because she was so scared of putting her face in, but she now goes off the diving board at 8. Her brother has not learned yet at 6, but he has autism and is still very fearful of getting his face wet.
I do believe that every child should learn to swim as soon as they can.
I taught at the YMCA preschool and we started the children in swimming lessons twice a week as 3 year olds in the second half of the year. I taught the 4/5 year olds. Usually all the kids could swim the length of the pool without aid by the end of the year. The kids were between 4 and 5 years old. Some kids learn earlier, but in my experience, 4 is the optimum age because the kids are more influenced by their peers to put their faces in the water (essential).
My granddaughter learned a bit later because she was so scared of putting her face in, but she now goes off the diving board at 8. Her brother has not learned yet at 6, but he has autism and is still very fearful of getting his face wet.
I do believe that every child should learn to swim as soon as they can.
I agree, and you make an important point here. Some kids are more afraid of the water than others. My dunk-the-kid-till-she-learns-to-hold-her-breath method wouldn't be a good idea to use on a child who was fearful. That would be awful. My kid had no fear, which was causing the problem.
It's different for all children and parents, but for a child to learn to properly swim they would have to achieve it without the aid. It's pretty easy to teach swimming to a child even if they were to fall in and find the edge of the pool to hold onto if necessary. Children become too dependant on the flotation device, whatever it may be, therefore it will take more time to teach them the proper technique of holding breathe, staying calm, getting to the shallow point. You can basically teach all this within a couple of days. Of course I learned to swim at the age of 3 without the aid of flotation devices, but with swimming lessons and dad there by myside.
The babies of all animals know how to swim, Giraffe, kangaroo, mouse, anything. Take a baby kitten, eyes still closed, toss it in a pond, it will swim. Who taught your dog to swim?
Humans are taught fear of things it is unnatural to be afraid of, and so humans panic when they go into the water. We also put clothing on humans, which retards the capacity to swim, so we have plenty of anecdotal reports of people drowning.
Because of their fear of water, older human children will not enjoy the experience of being thrown into the water, and will probably carry a lingering resentment to anyone who inflicts that upon them, so it is better to put them in the water at a very early age. Like, the day their umbilical cord heals. If a baby learns, at the age of a few days, that the water is a natural environment that they are preprogrammed to survive and even flourish in, you will never need to teach the child to swim. He already knows, just don't let him forget or become fearful.
Pacific islanders, who live with proximity and dependence on their lagoons, put their babies in the water within a couple of weeks of birth, and just let them bob around on their own. The lagoon makes a great baby sitter---the baby can't get into any trouble or danger until it gets ashore.
All I know if that I started with swimming lessons as an infant and was in the water with no floatation devices, but am still not comfortable in the water. I can swim and treadwater and have just a small amount of fear to jump off of the high dive, but I'm just not comfortable swimming or putting my head under water for a long time. So, I'm not sure it's as natural as the PP thinks.
In any case I got the arm floaties that my 3 yr old can use when she just wants to "play" in the water with us. Otherwise I'm also getting the belt thing and just going to encourage her more to doggie paddle as she tries to do already while standing with her. Starting in the fall I'll put her in swim lessons for proper technique and classes.
Yesterday she was at the pool with DH and tried to swim a little bit on her own... then she got tired and wanted to play in the water with DH while holding onto a noodle. I think that's going to be the balance to keep her happy in water- some active swimming tries and alternating with playing too until the two meld together and she's swimming to play.
Thanks!
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