Hellobee

I’ve always been especially anxious to teach the kids how to swim because we live in South Florida near the ocean and spend a lot of time around pools. So last week, R + M started swimming lessons. We started off on Monday morning with two year olds who didn’t hate the water, but didn’t really know what to do once they were in it. Fast-forward to Friday, when both of my kids could swim. It felt revolutionary and I am thrilled and (slightly) more relieved about living with a baby-fenced pool in our backyard.

There are lots of different ways to teach your children to swim. 

ISR

The first method that I researched is called Infant Swimming Resource, Self-Rescue, or ISR for short. This method is recommended for babies 6 months to 6 years.

According to their website:

ISR’s unique results are achieved through fully customized, safe and effective, one-on-one lessons with only your child and the Instructor in the water. What your child will learn, and the way he or she will learn it, is what makes ISR so different from traditional swimming lessons. Always putting safety first, ISR emphasizes competence, which leads to confidence, and provides the foundation for a lifetime of enjoyment in and around the water.

What your child will learn depends his or her age and developmental readiness, but in all cases, at minimum, your child will learn to roll onto his or her back to float, rest, and breathe, and to maintain this position until help arrives.

My friends who utilized this method took these lessons in their home pool or at a facility for ten minutes a day, Monday through Friday for 4 to 6 weeks. It is a daily routine and regimen.

Group Classes

I also researched taking a group class at our local JCC/YMCA. There were Baby and Me courses available for 6-36 month olds where I would be in the pool with the kids. After 2 1/2 they offer toddler courses without caregivers in the pool. Different facilities varied slightly, but the concept was the same. There are tons of types of group classes in different styles.

Private Lessons

In the end we opted for private lessons with a highly recommended instructor found on a local mom messaging board. We decided that getting two toddlers in suits/swim diapers and in the water would be a much less stressful event if it was in the comfort of our own backyard. Different local instructors had different reviews from friends and colleagues, and I went with one who took a gentler, yet still stern approach to swimming.

Starting Monday morning, our instructor came to our house for five straight days. She swam a half hour with M and then a half hour with R.

Day One

Day one was not that much fun. M got into the pool first. He was timid and shy and obviously uncomfortable being with someone new. Although Mr. C and I had been swimming with the kids relatively consistently at least a few times a month, I could never have wholeheartedly said that either of my kids loved the pool. They just didn’t hate it.

The instructor showed M a few skills. She had him try to swim to our pool wall, pull his hands up and “monkey” (move himself hand over hand, gripping onto the edge) over to our steps. The first try was tough to watch. M barely even flailed around and he came up crying. The instructor took him to the wall and showed him “monkeys,” and slowly but surely he made his way to the steps where I sat with my feet in the water. She comforted him while he cried and wiped his tears and boogers away. Then he went again. There were lots of tears and a little shaking, even though our pool was 87 degrees. I was nervous. Would my kids ever swim?

After a half hour M got out, still whining/crying. We hid R in the house so she wouldn’t see her brother’s fear and tears. She came out hysterical. The swim lesson went similar to M’s but with much less “kicking.” The one skill both of my kids were relatively good at though was learning to hold their breath. When she counted 1, 2, 3, each would take a big gasp for air before putting their face under.

I know that swimming skills don’t come easily to any kid, and our instructor comforted me that this was a totally normal reaction for kids to have. Each day would get better as their confidence improved. Needless to say, I was skeptical.

Days Two – Four

Day two was the worth day. As I dressed the kids in the morning, they got wind of me taking out bathing suits and swim diapers. Both screamed, “NOOOOO!” at the top of their lungs. My heart hurt. Then our teacher knocked on the door and full out tantrums began. But once they were in the pool, the crying slowly subsided. During M’s lesson, he stopped crying within the first 5 minutes. When our teacher asked M if he wanted to go to the wall, he said “Ok, 1, 2 3.”

I could see something with clicking, but he still didn’t kick with any tenacity and almost did the “dead man’s float” until he propelled himself with a few kicks to the wall. Still, I could see glimmers of improvement and the fading of the fear. R was also improving but still remained steadfast with tears throughout the entire lesson. However, I could tell the fear was gone and these were more angry tears for forcing her to partake in something she didn’t want to. We carried on. I was determined not to quit. But I still wasn’t sure that three more days would really produce actual swimming toddlers.

Days three and four created more progress. There was still crying when our teacher knocked at the door. R whined all through M’s lesson. But after day three, M wanted to sit on the side of the pool and watch and encourage R during her lesson. The tears stopped quickly into the lesson. I could see the fear subsiding. My mom confidence also increased, feeling comfortable and excited about the potential of knowing how to swim.

The Final Day

Friday was the last day of our lesson. I took the bathing suits out in the morning and both kids said “I swim, I swim!!!” They smiled. Then our instructor came to the door and both started clapping and said “swimming pool!!!” I was beaming. I was also in a bathing suit ready to get in with them. M went first. He kicked like a fish. He kicked to the wall. He monkeyed to the stairs. He jumped off the stairs and kicked to the instructor standing at least 5 feet away. He asked to keep going over and over. He was a fish!!! R got in the water and sat on the steps during M’s lesson. She splashed and kicked. We didn’t have to hide her from him to keep her anxiety at bay. She wanted to get in too. And the kicking clicked for her too. Even more so than her brother. All of her feistiness translated into great swimming. To the wall… to me… to the instructor. It felt transforming. In five days my kids went from fear to confidence in the water.

Following Up

Our instructor told us that to maintain this confidence and build on swimming skills, Mr. C and I will need to be in the water with them as much as possible. I’m planning to swim on the weekends with them, and aim for at least one weekday swim. It doesn’t need to be for a huge amount of time, but I want to keep them happy and comfortable in the water.

Some tips I learned from our swim lesson experience:

1. Keep the pool warm. A warm, comfy pool translates to warm comfy babies who are soothed in the water.

2. Persistence is key. Although I wanted to quit after day one, I had confidence in our instructor and my kids. I am thrilled we decided to continue.

3. After the first day, we switched R + M’s bath to right after pool time. It warmed them up after coming inside wet and calmed them down a little.

4. Prepare for long naps {hooray} after swimming. The pool really tires them out. BONUS!

5. Prepare for bigger diapers. Sometimes babies drink pool water. That means more pee and sometimes more of other things you might not enjoy as much. Just prepare to be more vigilant about changing them.

6. Prepare for tears. I don’t think there is a right or wrong way that kids react to swimming. After all, each child has a unique personality and anxiety/fear about activities. Even my own children had two very different reactions to our week.

7. Start when you are ready. We actually did a mini version of swim lessons last summer. The kids weren’t walking yet and weren’t very vocal. I don’t think that the lessons really “took” at all. This year, at two, my kids are physically a lot more confident and verbal. I think this really helped make the lessons click for them.

Are you doing swim lessons with your child/children this summer? Have you used a successful method that you recommend?