How Skilled Is Your Swimmer?

I guess I am a little biased. My hubby is a PADI Diver and so is my 16 yo. The other two are at her heels, they are just not old enough.
16 yo missed the cutoff date for Ligeguard training but will do it in Oct.
All three are on the swim team with the park district, as was my oldest who is now in the Navy.
My 16 has been on the HS swim team for 3 years.
I think swimming is one of the most important life skills one can have.

I say let her do her swimming lessons. Then take her all summer, get her in the water at Grandma's after lessons and practice, take her to the pool and practice, practice, practice.

If she likes swimming lessons and wants to continue, then by all means do it and let her take more than one session.
Mine have been in a pool since they were infants.

OK that's weird, I have no idea how my post got on here twice, sorry.

top-notch in their skills....we're talking about safety & that's what the life lesson here is. You don't skimp when it comes to safety!

I think all that stuff is awesome for her to learn and know! Good for you! Keep up with the lessons; you should be able to tell after 2 weeks how well she is doing and you should even be able to help her practice to a point where she will get enough experience to swim across the pool. good luck!

O. thing I didn't see in your post is does your daughter want to learn to swim? If so, I'd sign her up for the 2 week session and see how that goes.

My son is 8 and we had a breakthrough last year. He can "swim" across the pool, go under, do a flip, tread water to stay afloat, etc. Do I think he could swim to the shore of a rapid-filled river? Probably not. Before last summer, his *issue* was going under water and I thought he resisted swimming b/c he didn't want water in his eyes. Turns out (O. $6.99 dive mask later) that the issue was his nose and he was a complete fish after that and open to trying anything.
What's going on with your daughter? Is she afraid? Is there something else?

It doesn't really matter how skilled per say. I would have your daughter attend until you feel comfortable and she feels comfortable with her swimming. Every one advances at their own rate. Once the two weeks are up see how she feels and how you feel then decide on if she needs more lessons.

I have 3 kids. My 15 year old is a very skilled swimmer. He can do anything in the water ( last week he actually hauled me at dead weight to the side of the pool to show me) also he has had two sessions of survival swimming with the JROTC. My 4 year old is fearless, he is not swimming yet, but with water wings he will jump off the deep end, go under and dog paddle back up. My 10 year old is deathly afraid of water. She has had to sessions of swim and failed both tests. She will swim when she is ready. We are always careful around the pool. We always have more than one set of adult eyes on the kids when they are in or around the pool. I personally have taken the YMCA's lifesaving class many times so that I could stay certified.

I'm a scuba instructor and can't emphasize enough the importance for anyone, but especially a child to be able to get themselves to the edge of a pool unassisted. The consequences of not being able to do so are unspeakable. I also taught swimming for many years and come from a large family of swimming instructors and competition swimmers and while it certainly isn't necessary for someone to be of that caliber swimmer to swim safely, a person really needs to be capable of motoring their way thru water for a fair distance. It's about safety! Generally, no, a child is not ready after only a two week session of lessons. Even once their lessons are complete they still needs lots of practice. Perhaps your husband might be willing to go swimming with her and make it a daddy daughter activity? She may really enjoy her lessons and wish to take it further herself one day. And you made the strongest point of all, Grandma and Grandpa have a boat. No one that isn't able to swim should ever be allowed on a boat. Things happen all the time and in a situation where someone is thrown overboard and people are in state of chaos and panic, horrible things can happen to the victim. For peace of mind and your daughter's comfort, safety and confidence, absolutely she should not just know, but be able to demonstrate with skill she would know how to get herself out of this kind of situation.

Haven't read any other responses but...this is one thing I would have to go against my husband and do what I feel is best for my child. Everyone should know how to swim!!!! Within the first 2 weeks of summer in our area there were like 4-5 drownings and if you were able to prevent this, why wouldn't you do that?

Also, when they get to the age of going to other people's houses you can't control everything they do and what if they go swimming and something happens, you would never forgive yourself.

I agree with you, all the things you want your daughter to do, I think she she learn to do too!

~We have a pool. All my kids can swim and have had (all) the lessons available to them. I think it is a smart idea to do this. My kids (well not the youngest, she is only 3 and is still working in the shallow end w/out the life jacket) can swim the length of the pool both above water and under the water, can pick up a penny from the bottom of the deep end, tread water, snorkel, do flips off the diving board,etc. The bigger boys took lessons all the way up to Level 7, my younger kids are at Levels 4,3,1. My 7 y/o is at Level 4 already but is having trouble doing the backstroke the whole length of the (Olympic size) pool, so he might have to re-peat it and practice.

I think it's important, because if she goes to a camp...they have swimmer skill tests, and her friends are at the deep end and she will not be able to go. This happened to my son at boy scout camp last year..he felt separated from his friends...and he's 10 also. I think it's very important too because we fish alot, go camping, boating, jet skiing...etc. I really need to do this too and I was a life guard! My children are in alot of sports, but never had the time to squeeze swimming lessons in.

I guess I am a little biased. My hubby is a PADI Diver and so is my 16 yo. The other two are at her heels, they are just not old enough.
16 yo missed the cutoff date for Ligeguard training but will do it in Oct.
All three are on the swim team with the park district, as was my oldest who is now in the Navy.
My 16 has been on the HS swim team for 3 years.
I think swimming is one of the most important life skills one can have.

I say let her do her swimming lessons. Then take her all summer, get her in the water at Grandma's after lessons and practice, take her to the pool and practice, practice, practice.

If she likes swimming lessons and wants to continue, then by all means do it and let her take more than one session.
Mine have been in a pool since they were infants.

Swimming is an important life skill! One two-week session is not enough. We started my daughter at age 3 and son just before age 2....they will continue lessons at the YMCA until they are ready for swim team. My husband and his family are horrible swimmers-except his eldest brother- and they have a vacation home on a lake and 2 boats! Needless to say everyone wears life preservers or my brother in law or me have to bs present when the kiddos are swimming (I have 11 nieces / nephews). I also had a horrible experience w swim lessons at age 7 and almost drowned....my parents too a year off then started me on summer lessons every year for the next 4 plus I had swimming as part of gym in school ages 11-13...by high school I swam on the swim team and had my lifeguard certs. Now I do triathlons. I think if she is getting invites to pool parties, she needs to learn or not go swimming during the parties....good luck convincing your hubby! Because my hubby appreciates my swim skills and acknowledges that he has none....he agrees with me on the continuous swimming lesson enrollment for our kids!

If there is *ever* a situation where anyone will be around water, it's important that they know how to swim. And since it seems like your family does various water activities, it becomes vital that your daughter learn to swim. Plus, it's FUN! Why would her dad try to deprive her of 1)safety and 2)fun? I'm totally with you on this one - she should learn how to swim at least the length of the pool, be able to tread water and learn water safety. She DOESN'T need to be able to high-dive or do butterfly or synchronized swimming, unless, of course, she WANTS to (which is a whole other thing). My girls are 8 and 10 and have been swimming since they were 2 and 4. This past year, they started swim team and have spent the last 10 months swimming about 3 times per week. They absolutely love it! The added benefits are that they have become physically strong and fit, and they can get great exercise without stressing their joints (knee problems run in our family). They'll do 10 laps just for warm up, before really "getting into it"! It clears their minds, calms them down, I really can't explain how much regular swimming's benefitted my girls. But the first step, of course, is learn to swim and learn water safety.

I think it's vitally important that every child know how to swim. After the ability to save one's life is learned, I think it's a wonderful thing to know how to swim well enough to enjoy the water.

I have been taking my daughter to swim lessons in the summer since she was 1 1/2 years old. I will until she's too old for the park district lessons. We love the water, live by a river, vacation with pools and oceans and I want her to love the water as much as we do.

Since I am such a water lover, I feel sad when people are scared of the water or don't enjoy it. You should work hard to try to not let your husband's bad experiences ruin her swim skills.

BTW - my daughter was swimming well when she was 6. And I think it would be great if she keeps at it and may want to work as a lifeguard at a pool in the summers - what better way to earn money???

Best of luck, but I am with you 100% - especially in light of the fact that her family is in to water as well!

Would your husband want your daughter to drive a car without lessons? Here are the keys to the car, sweetie...good luck! Same concept. Being around water without having some skills is dangerous. If g&g are into water activities and she knows how to swim then she and they will enjoy their water activities together that much more. And you will be more comfortable with it as well. I wouldn't get rid of the life vest by any means. Going back to the car analogy...it's the seatbelt.

Just google drowning deaths. This is dated, but you could probably find more information

"In 2004, of all children 1-4 years old who died, 26% died from drowning (CDC 2006). Fatal drowning remains the second-leading cause of unintentional injury-related death for children ages 1 to 14 years (CDC 2005)"

my kids are 7 and almost 5. the can swim well when they can touch the ground of the pool, but they don't know how to tread water. which i think is very important. almost more important than knowing how to swim IMO. honestly, if your daughter picks it up quickly at the lessons, every morning for 2 weeks should be enough. we went on vacation, and in one night for about 1.5 hours, i had my daughter swimming the length of the pool and my son probably about 1/2 way. once a child learns something like that, it pretty much sticks with them. and you can teach her to throw the flotation device yourself.

Follow your instincts. I hate to say it, but your husband seems to be making some strange decisions. I can appreciate that he had a bad experience with swim lessons as a child, but that has nothing to do with your child today. The kids around here take lessons for YEARS. It's just something parents keep up on so that they get stronger and more confident. They keep going to the Y and eventually are on the Y team. I grew up on water and a couple weeks of lessons won't do you any good if you get into trouble in the water. You need lots of experience and confidence. Not to scare you, but it's the kids who have had 2 weeks of lessons who drown because they've had just enough practice to think they can swim and misjudge their abilities. Swimming is lots of fun, very social and something children should be proficient at for safety reasons. Lessons every morning might be overkill (and inconvenient for you!), but I'd go once or twice a week until you feel like your daughter is a strong swimmer, which might take months or years. Do a few private sessions to get her up to speed. If she likes it, it can be an ongoing thing that's fun for her, and something she can enjoy for life.

Age 10 is a really difficult age to learn to start swimming. I was a lifeguard and swim instructor for about 8 years. At that age, the kids bodies are much bigger, and it is difficult for them to learn how their bodies move in the water. What I would suggest is to start with private lessons. Yes, they are more expensive, but ultimately, you will probably end up doing fewer lessons because she will be getting one on one attention. Plus, the kids in the 'beginner' classes will be younger and your daughter may feel a little out of place. To give you an idea, I've done many children at that age. I would guestimate that it would take about 4 weeks of private lessons if your daughter is comfortable getting in the water. If she is scared of water, it will be a little longer. My two children, ages 6 and 5 took 8 weeks of consecutive lessons last summer. The older one could swim the entire length of the pool by the 6th week. The little one who turned 6 this April, is back to trying to swim 1/3 the lenght of the pool. Give it some time, but it is truly and important skill for your daughter to have. We've had really good luck at DuPage swimming center. If you do group lessons, the sizes are limited to 4 children per group there.

Your skills are very legitimate and good! She needs to know what to do if thrown overboard...it's simple, called a deadman's float. I took swimming lessons every summer for 3-4 yrs and I think it was everyday or almost everyday for 2 months out of the summer. By the end I could do every stroke except the butterfly since they didn't teach it. All that knowledge came in handy when I, a very strong and experienced swimmer, got stuck in a strong current and was struggling to get out. My friends were all around, but no one noticed that I was floundering. So, I did the side stroke (best one for cutting the current) and just had to do that for 30 mins to get across 20 ft of water to safety. I was exhausted by the time I got to land, but thankful that I had all that instruction to get there.

My dad was the opposite of your husband - he nearly drowned when he was younger and was determined that I would learn how to swim, thus all of the lessons. 2 weeks is not nearly enough time to get that good. I would recommend this whole summer if you can afford it, and then I think you'll be set and very pleased.

H.

I completely agree with everything you wish for for your child. My kids love the water. My daughters (almost 10 and just turned 8) are both very good swimmers and are comfortable in the water. Many people in Naperville, and I assume in other places too, swim in the summer swim team program organized by the park district. Kids who are 5 by June 1st are eligible to participate. 5 and 6 year olds swim 1 length of the pool (25 meters) in freestyle and backstroke. By age 10 the kids are swimming the 4 competitive strokes: freestyle, backstroke, breaststroke, and butterfly, in 50 and 100 meter races. My family is not athletic at all, but my daughters can do this with a moderate amount of summertime only practice, having started in this program at age 5. Almost every child in our neighborhood participates in some program like this, so this is the standard for swimming ability around here. The "lifesaving skills" are not emphasized, however, and this is something I like and think is really lacking. When I was a kid I took lessons every summer and went through the Red Cross lifesaving program. I learned how to make an inflated flotation device from my own jeans if I happened to fall overboard while fully dressed, and all those other things like treading water, floating, breathing, etc. These are very important life skills for safety and summertime enjoyment. I or 2 weeks of lessons each year might be okay if your child was in the water on her own a lot but it sounds like she has some catching up to do. Best of luck!

I agree that you should go for the two weeks and then reevaluate, but I wanted to add that maybe your husband is just freaked out since he had a bad experience. Probably he does really want her to know how to swim but maybe it brings him personal anxiety to think that she's going to be "forced" to swim. I would talk to him about it and communicate your issues and let him know that you're willing to listen if he wants to talk about his concerns.

My son is 8 and my daughter is 3 - both can swim well enough to save their lives if they fell overboard from a boat, or into a pool - which was my goal. Both are strong swimmers, and can swim underwater, tread water etc. Neither have ever had swimming lessons, I believe that any competent adult can teach their own child to swim. BUT, and it's a big but, we have a pool, so we swim every day for a couple of hours - sometimes twice a day.
2 weeks would be long enough for anyone to learn to swim - I taught my daughter in a week.
It is an important skill - for the reasons above.

Oh, and I forgot to add - my son couldn't swim well, until last year, he is WAYYYYY more timid than my duaghter who is a major daredevil - my son clung to me like a limpet whenever we were in a pool - hard work with a heavy 6 year old - in the end I just had to let him go, tell him to kick with no floaties on, and he was like, "oh, that's what you have to do" this isn't so bad! Some kids need a bit more encouragement!

My daughter is 6 years old, and she has become a pretty skilled swimmer since she started taking lessons at Chicago Swim School (locations in Arlington Heights, Glenview, and Oswego). Initially, she took the typical 2-week park district lessons in the summer. But we came to feel it was a waste of time & money because there wasn't enough individual attention and not enough weeks of lessons. We like Chicago Swim School because they have small classes (4 per class), and it's 11 weeks long (one lesson/week). They have year-round lessons, and the pool is indoors and heated. It is kind of pricey, but we feel it's worth it. Here is their website if interested: www.chicagoswimschool.com.

I think those are smart for her to learn. I think the issue that your husband might be most focused on is: Does it all have to happen RIGHT NOW?
Sign her up and take her to the 2 weeks of lessons. See how it goes. Commit YOURSELF to providing her with regular swimming opportunities during and thereafter-- I have found there is NOTHING like TIME IN THE WATER on a REGULAR basis to instill confidence in swimmers. My kids are like fish now... because they are in the pool almost daily in the summer. Hours in the water give them that ease.
Once she learns the basics and is comfortable with it, then move on to the more advanced things (looking out for others). Right now she needs to focus on herself.
Just my 2¢.

We started with lessons for all three children at our local YMCA (indoors - they are offered year round). Our pediatrician emphasized the need for each child to learn to swim for safety reasons. Our school district used to bus children to the high school during two weeks of third grade for swim lessons but to cut costs they stopped. Our high schools offer indoor summer swim schools for children of all ages in different stations based on the skills of the incoming swim school student. My kids attended this summer program and our youngest daughter became a swim school teacher and loved helping the beginners. All three kids eventually became licensed scuba divers and have fun in the water. My goal at the beginning was for each child to be able to kick and paddle all the way across the pool and blow bubbles in the water and be able to feel confident in the pool. I monitored the first swim lessons to ensure that adequate safety considerations were followed. I helped the Y by taking three year olds to the washroom so that the swim teacher could keep on teaching the swim lesson.
BTW my sister was bribed to put her face in the water to blow bubbles by being allowed to keep the pennies in the water...I remember my Mom practicing with her in the bathtub when we were little kids.
In Naperville there have been two small children recently rescued from the water. Being safe around water is so important!
I believe you have the lessons until the skill is mastered and not some artificial number of weeks. Private lessons are a great idea and should be easy to arrange at your nearby pool.

I would say start with the two weeks and see how it goes and how much your daughter enjoys it. I do think it is good to be able to swim at least across a swimming pool at that age, which is usually 12.5- 25 yards depending on the pool. Treading is important and just some general pool and water safety. With her out on a boat in a lake it can become even more important and is great that you want her to learn. If she enjoys the class I would keep going beyond the two weeks so she can learn more and get better at it. It sounds like she really wants to learn too. In college my roommate could not swim and it was require to graduate that you could pass a 75 yard swim test. She had to take swimming as a freshman and at the end of the semester was happy that she did and was much more comfortable in and around the water.

My son is not of swimming age yet, but I started our summer swim team when I was 6 after having lessons previously for a few years. It was good exercise and fun.To go off the diving boards at our pool you also had to pass a swim test that was 25 yards (2 laps) even though it is only about 5 yards to the edge from where you go in off the board.

..

My daughter attended daycare at the YMCA and they started taking her to the pool weekly when she was 6 months old. Now at nine, she is in the top swimming lesson skill level that the Y offers. They also teach water safety. I think swimming is a necessary life skill.

I agree with you that the ability to swim is necessary for safety. I don't think the skills you list are "overkill".

I would have her attend the two week class and encourage her to continue with classes. It sounds like your husband is too caught up in his childhood memories and not thinking about the benefits for his daughter of being able to swim. It would also be fun for her to be able to swim with friends.

My parents have a pool, so my kids have been in swimming lessons since they were about 8 months old.

My 4 year old can swim the length of a pool unassisted. My 3 year old can float and swim with a life vest. My baby will be in the pool this summer and be in lessons this fall.

I feel swimming is a VERY important thing to learn. How many children drown each summer/year? I'm very attentive to my children, but I'm more comfortable around water knowing that my oldest can swim and the younger ones will learn soon.