Do Your Kids Know How to Swim?

Yes. My 4 year old is a good swimmer. We have been doing lessons since she was about two. Knowing how to swim is really important even if they are not in the water very often. It's great you are going to do lessons!

OK, I guess we'd better get professional lessons. You have me all convinced to do it all year. It's a good skill, I agree!

I live in Canada and we only have about two months of outdoor swimming, but we do have lots of indoor pools here so we swim year round. My kids have both been in weekly swimming lessons since they were infants, and can both swim well. Now they are 8 and 11 and are able to swim in pools that have lifeguards, without me. I love to swim and go to the beach so swimming was an important skill for my kids to have. We also enjoy boating, kayaking, canoeing and fishing, so I like the kids to be safe near the water.

Yes...all three of our kids are ISR trained swimmers. They are now very strong swimmers and on a summer swim team each year and our oldest plays USA club water polo. We have a pool, all our neighbors have pools and we live near many bodies of water. We felt very strongly about our kids learning to swim...at a young age.

No sense in feeling guilty....use that guilt to be proactive to take the offer from your SIL and get them in lessons ASAP.

Swimming is a life saving skill. I live in California and it breaks my heart every time I hear of a drowning. These drownings happen more and more as the weather starts warming up. Kids head to swimming pools with families for parties/bbq and families go to the lake,river and ocean.

We had two kids almost drown in our swimming pool last summer. Mom headed inside to use the restroom and the girls did not have their floaties on their arms yet. Luckily my husband jumped in to rescue one while I was jumping in to save the other. Still gives me shivers thinking about what could have happened if we didn't have our eyes on the pool at the same time.

This is a plea out to all parents...please get your young children in swim lessons. YOU can't prevent drownings by thinking it won't happen to your kids because you never go swimming. Kids drown when even lots of adults are around a pool. Protective gates are often left open,doors get left unlocked...drowning is a silent killer.

The most tragic story I have heard was two years ago. Parents came home after grandma babysitting. The young child, a stroller and grandma were found at the bottom of the pool. Grandma didn't know how to swim...grandma couldn't rescue her drowning grandchild. So very devastating!!

There are indoor pools all over the country...lessons offered year round. As for the cost...many times swim teachers will trade lessons for services because they feel so strongly about every child knowing how to swim. Please parents...do what you can to give your children the skill to save their own life.

I felt it was very important for my kids to know how to swim, it could be a matter of life and death if something where to happen while we were boating or fishing.

My son is a very strong swimmer and has been since he was about 3. My daughter who is 17 months old can hold her own as well. Not yet a independent swimmer but she can do a bit

I insisted that my daughter learn to swim as a preschooler. I didn't care if she ever swam for pleasure, but I wanted her to know how to not drown if she fell into water over her head.
It doesn't matter if they're taught by you or a pro - the only thing that matters is that they learn.

Absolutely, swimming is one of those skills all kids should have.

yeah, i'm one of the ones who considers it a necessary life skill.
khairete
S.

Yes, both of my children, 4 and 7, can swim. Both were able to swim by 3. They swim well, but we are still taking swim lessons to hone their skills. We have pool and that is our biggest motivator. Texas weather gives us an advantage. But my husband and I both strongly feel like swimming is a life skill.

Absolutely. My parents loved the mountains - I went to the coast twice as a child. I was in a pool once when I was 7, then the next time was a camp when I was 13. I wish so much that someone had taken me to a pool and let me be a "fish" like my husband and his family, who were in pools all the time and vacationed at the beach.

When I went off to college, I took beginning swimming so that I could pass the swim test. I never got any better at it than that. I felt SO sorry for those 18 year old guys in my swim class who had never been in a pool before, and they literally shook, trying to put their faces in the water. At least I could do that.

I took my kids to the YMCA for several years - a labor of love - so that they would be like their daddy in the water instead of me! Then I put them on a swim team. It worked and they are wonderful swimmers. Whether they become swim athletes like my younger son is, or just enjoy wonderful summers at the pool, swimming is a really important skill to learn. You never know when it may save their lives or help them save someone else's life.

My eldest started classes at 3 and my youngest is currently in classes (also 3). For me its mainly a safety issue, although my kids like recreational swimming and in the winter we go to indoor pools, swimming for me its more than a sport or entertainment, its my kids being as safe as possible around water.
That said, although my oldest one is a good recreational swimmer, I now have him in additional classes to learn the different styles to swim more as a sport since I believe its one of the more complete ones.
Hope your kids like it!!!

Yes! It is a very important skill. Do not worry, it is never too late!

I consider knowing how to swim a life skill and I made my kids stay in lessons until they knew how to swim. We are in an area where swimming is a common activity for much of the year. Kids in water scares me even though my kids can swim and I always have my eyes on them or am in the water when we're at the pool.

My Mom never knew how to swim and was afraid of the water her whole life, so she made sure that all of us grew up swimming. I only remember having one set of lessons though through a program at the public pool, and much preferred my head out of water way of swimming to the proper way. But then I grew up mostly swimming in lakes and rivers, where it's a good idea to have your head above water.

I don't think it's important *who teaches them as long as they learn.

Yes. All my kids were taught to swim starting when they were three.
You can't always be there and you need to teach your kids to swim while they are still kids. I've met a few adults that weren't taught as kids to swim and be safe in the water. They missed out on so many of the kids activities that revolved around the water.

Kids are much easier to teach to swim because they are fearless around the water. Adults are much more afraid of the water if they weren't taught to swim as children.

So teach your kids to swim. Good luck to you and yours.

Absolutely! I hate the water and I have fears of it as well but my husband is a fish. I didn't want my sons to have the same issues with water as I have so we also had them in swim lessons until they were teenagers. I have no qualms with them going boating, kayaking, canoeing, swimming b/c I know they have the skills to help them out in most any situation. They have also done the mile swim every summer at Scout camp which makes me even more confident in their swimming abilities.

Don't feel guilty, just be glad you are getting on track now. :)

L.:

My kids know how to swim...my husband and I believe it is a life skill one must have...for ANY circumstance...not just because there is a pool around the corner.

While both my husband and I have been certified life guards and taught our children the basics - strokes, floating, etc. we paid someone to correct their form or things like that so swimming would be FUN and not a chore!

don't feel bad. The "mistake" is being corrected. Even when it's cold out - take 'em to the YMCA to keep their skills up during the winter!

Don't feel bad, my kids didn't start them until we started going around water a lot. Even in the summers in MD where it gets really hot, we didn't swim.

Now we swim as often as possible, the last few years really.

All of my kids are what I call strong swimmers....they can all swim in water 12 feet deep or more and enjoy the diving board and slide (except the little one because he doesn't want to take his goggles off).

They are 6, 8, and 10. However, the oldest one didn't really start learning to actually swim until 6 or so.

My 9 y/o is in his 5th year of classes and my 5 y/o is in his 3rd year. We are on the other side of the mountains near Spokane.

yes my kids know how to swim. My daughter could swim by herself with out a life jacket or anything when she was 3, she is 8 now. My son is 6 and he can doggy paddle. We never put them in lessons. We are also from So Cal and we were at the pool daily. I was on swim team and waterpolo growing up and my husband was a life guard. We taught them ourselves. We live in VA now and the pools are only open in the summer. During the summer we are in the pool as much as possible.

Don't feel bad about not putting them in lessons. Now is better than never :)

Yep, both knew how to swim by age 4, they are swim team now. Of course this is Texas and we can swim 5 months out of the year and have indoor pools galore, so it's more of a necessity.

Yes. My son took some formal lessons when he was 3. He was very comfortable in the water right off, but never fully learned to swim after the first set of lessons.

The following year, we signed him up again, and he missed the first 2 days of 5 b/c we were at the wrong location and no one spoke up and told us that he wasn't on their list! He did ok, but missing out the first 2 days, he never felt comfortable in the group and held back.

He was still comfortable in the water (putting his head under, holding his breath, picking up things from the bottom when he could climb up the steps).. but he wouldn't "swim." When we got our own pool and he had daily access, he was a fish in about 3 weeks.

Daughter never had formal lessons. But we taught her all the pool rules (no running, no dunking, no faking drowning, how to help someone--give them something floating or a stick, etc)... she was only 4 at first. By the end of the summer the following year, she was a fish.

Daily access makes a HUGE difference.

Yes, my kids had lessons very early on.
But we're in Northern Cal, lots of people here have pools and we belong to a nice pool ourselves where we have spent many, many days over the years.
Don't feel bad that you've taught them yourself, nothing wrong with that!
I will say, though, being taught by a pro really does make a difference. My oldest daughter did swim team for two years and she is an absolutely BEAUTIFUL swimmer. And her dive is perfect.
When I get in the pool I look like a big duck :-/

Yes.My daughter is 3 and she learned at the age of 2.We still watch her when she goes swimming and help her because she is still learning but she is doing better

Yes all my kids know how to swim. We own a pool though...so it was a necessity that they learn how. I taught them all how to swim at or around 2y/o & then we payed for lessons for each of them, for a good amount of years. My oldest 'set' of kids (sons & nephews) have taken lessons all the way up to level 7 through The Red Cross, level 7 is Lifeguard training.

My younger 'set' are only 9, 7 & 5 and are in levels 5 & 3.

~You don't need to put them in all the levels, they don't need to know how to do all the strokes (my 5y/o daughter is having trouble w/the butterfly) but they do just need to know how to swim & not drown!

Let go of the guilt, it doesn't do any of us any good to hold onto it. Just know that you & your SIL are fixing the situation & be thankful & grateful!

Our son knows how to swim and he's never had a formal swimming lesson.
We've had him in pools since he was small (he had to wear a vest at first) and he's picked it up and is quite the fish in water.
He dives, floats, treads water, swims on his back, swims under water, swims in deep water, dives after diving rings, does somersaults and hand stands under water and loves doing cannon balls.
He also loves jumping waves and using the boogy board when we're in the ocean and we also swim when we take the boat out.

Yes, they had lessons. My mom was always afraid of the water and passed that on to me. That meant it made me be very sure I didn't pass that on to my kids. Although if any of the kids shrieked while the lessons were going on, I was up off my seat before I even knew it!

My kids are fishes but then I have an irrational fear of drowning. Like that would be, bar none, the worst way I could lose a child!

Plus everyone I know has a pool and I am not always around when they swim.

Yes both kiddos took swimming lessons for several summers. My in-laws had a pool and it concerned me when we would visit them. So, off to lessons we went.

My dad taught swimming all thru high school, college and after he and my mom got married. He taught me and my brother. Both of us are very strong swimmers. I think it is a very important skill.

I had swim lessons as a child and all they taught me was to use a kick board. SInce I was already ok playing in a pool, it was a real waste of time and money. I can swim now but am not a strong swimmer.

Both my kids (ages 6 and 21) both have been in the pool very early, always been fearless, and have swam since about age 3 (maybe not great at age 3 but still). The only "classes" my son has had was when he was in college so he could get certified as a lifeguard (which he did 3 years ago).

Being from Seattle as well, we were late in regularly introducing our now 6yo to the pool. But last summer, we were invited to a very cool, private outdoor pool, and my then 5yo decided on her own to start discovering the underwater world. After that, we started taking her and my then 2yo to the indoor pool at our gym regularly. My 5-6 yo proceeded to teach herself to swim. She started by swimming underwater (goggles are essential) and then eventually figuring out how to swim on top of the water. She still doesn't do "real" strokes. She'll need lessons for that. But, I have no worries about her in the pool. She's a fish.

Her 2 now 3yo sister started with a life vest until she refused to wear it so she could "swim like a big girl." We got her to wear floaties a couple of times, but she pretty much wants to swim on her own. She started by figuring out how to tread water just enough to keep her mouth/nose out of water. She then figured out how to turn onto her back and swim that way. Then she progressed on to "swimming like a mermaid" (i.e., underwater). Again, mostly self taught. Although she can't be in the pool without an adult near, she can swim mostly independently.

It really is a matter of getting them in the pool 1 or 2 days a week, almost year round. They figure it out from there. This, of course, is also dependent on their being comfortable putting their heads under water.

Good luck. I think there is a Safe-n-Sound on the east side for swimming lessons. You should look into it. They are supposed to be really good.

Your older two should absolutely, positively be in swimming lessons by now. They should know how to swim and how to get themselves to safety if someone were to drop them in the middle of a swimming pool that was too deep to stand in. If your SIL is willing to pay, then absolutely take her up on it, and continue the lessons beyond what she pays until they are completely comfortable swimming at least a couple of laps in a pool.

Your two year old... kind of on the fence. I think she's old enough to become semi-water safe, learning to float on her back and get herself back to a wall if she's a few feet away. But I think you could hold off on lessons for a couple more years if you wanted to.

My son is 6 and started lessons a few months before he turned 4. He can swim all four strokes and is on the neighborhood swim team for the first time this year.

My daughter is 2.5 and isn't water safe at all. We did lessons with her for a couple of months, but a variety of factors led us to stop. I will definitely put her in lessons next spring to ensure she is water safe for next summer. We spend 4-5 days per week at the pool, so I need her to be safe!

My daughter is 8 and swims very well now. We did lessons at the safe n sound on the Eastside, which is now 7 Cs swim school (http://www.7cswimschool.com/). I recommend them.

I think it's an important skill regardless of where you live.

Yes but we never had them take lessons, they learned in our pool and at the pool at my parents' house. They are 15, 15, 9 and 7 and are all proficient swimmers and have been since around age 5. Knowing how to swim is a vital life skill. Taking formal lessons is not necessary if your kids have other ways to learn. If your 10 and 7 year olds know how to swim already and learned from you then you have nothing to feel guilty about.

my 12 yr old has lessons from age 3-5 and my 11 yr old never had lesson, just taught by me and husband but was swimming perfectly fine by age 6. Your older two REALLY should be good swimmers by now. Take up your sis on the offer.

Of course. We live in AZ and are in our pools 6+ months out of the year. My kids were 3.5 and 6 months when we moved here from So. Cal. We got them lessons right away because we bought a house with a pool. We also paid over 3k to have our pool fenced in for safety for our guests as well as anyone else who may come into our property. Don't feel bad. Now they have the opportunity which will be good for them. =)

Only because of Camp:) I know that is horrible as a former lifeguard and swim instructor AND the fact we are in TX (nice for swimming most of the year) I just never took the kids to lessons. My 9 yo is a natural and loves (loved) the water always, so he was an easy one to kind of teach as we played, but my 6 yo wouldn't let me set him down in the water until 4 yo. he was just petrified of those big (not wading pools) bodies of water. We did water parks last summer and camp and a steady diet of water activities, he has turned a corner.

Don't sweat it. They'll learn:)

The 6 year old is pretty good, they are working on floating, backstroke, diving now in her lessons. The 3 year old just had her first round of lessons this summer, she thinks she can swim and she can go under and make it to the step if you stand a few feet from it and toss her toward it.

I still watch both of them like a hawk in a pool. I have a lot more confidence in my older one this summer, but she is still young enough to panic if something out of the ordinary threw her off. The in-laws have a pool so lessons were a must from a young age.

Yes. I had my kids in swimming lessons shortly after they could walk.

I paid more for lessons at an indoor facility because I wanted them in warmer water- I didn't want them to dread the lessons because the water was so cold. As they got older, I switched them over to lessons at an outdoor pool.

my kids, age 9, can swim (somewhat). one can really well but has no condition to do it for a long time, the other one knows enough to not drown. they took swimming lessons on and off for two years then i stopped it because one of the kids (the one who barely swims) has had ear surgeries and will continue to have. water in ear was causing more complications than we needed. now we have a pool in our backyard and the one who has no issues has been swimming up a storm. but no i don't feel guilty about them not being olympic swimmers. i did as much as i could under the circumstances.

They are getting there. My 5 year old is struggling with rhythmic breathing, but her underwater swimming and treading is very strong.

My 3 year old is also greeting there. His front float is terrific, and he can swim a bit, but he lacks the coordination for a lot of it yet.

My daughter is learning she swims with arm floats but we just started taming them off when her dad and I are in the pool with her

Not really. My older kids did have lessons at the park district in Chicago but they were not really the greatest lessons. We do not have swim lessons where we are now unless you join the Y, which I have not been able to do until later this month. My older kids can dog paddle and keep themselves afloat, swim a couple of yards under water but that is it. If you do not have pool access, it is hard to teach. However, we are going to join the Y and I plan to make sure my 5 yr old and almost 2 yr old do learn.
I never really got lessons when I was little though my older sister did teach me. I am not a strong swimmer, mostly due to psych since a "friend" tried to drown me once. Kind of messed it up for me.

My kids are 6, 4, and 2. They are all taking swimming lessons at the YMCA. My 6 year old didn't have his first lesson until he was 5.5, and that seems to be very late around here. It's actually quite difficult to even find a life jacket in his size because the ones designed for kids (and sold at most stores) only go up to 50 lbs. Guess they expect kids his age to be better swimmers already.

I grew up in Minnesota, so swimming was pretty confined to the months of June-September. Still, I was able to tread water just fine by age 5. I know that if I fell out of a boat or into a pool at that age I would have been fine.

They don't have to be taught by a professional, though. You can teach them too, but it takes longer when you have to teach 3 at once. They don't have to be champions in the breast stroke, but they at least need to be able to tread water and climb out of a pool on their own.