Pixie dust please - DD4 taking swimming lessons

[KristiKelly]

DD4 started taking swimming lessons yesterday. The instructor is VERY Christian oriented, has taught Kindergarten for 20 years @ a Christian school & swimming lessons for 25 years. She has a VERY high success rate - the folks in our area call her (jokingly) "the swim nazi" - you know like the soup nazi from Seinfeld, but the kids love her. She teaches these kids to swim in 1 week 1 hour a day. DD is not scared of water but is scared to put her face under, which she did several times yesterday - but cried . I'm really worried today though, I spoke with someone last night whose kids took last week - day 2, THE DIVING BOARD!!! My little girl will have to jump off the diving board today!!! She is already so nervous & doesn't want to go back, I can't imagine the anxiety she must be feeling (I didn't tell her about the diving board - we all needed sleep last night). We cannot stay during the class & I'm so scared for her - please send some pixie dust Charlotte's way between 10:00-11:00 this morning. I would love to have put all this off for 1 more year, but MIL & my dad both have pools, so she must know the basics & how to get to the side if she were to ever fall in. Sorry I'm rambling on here, but I'm just so nervous for her. Thanks for listening & I'll report back after class.

 

[Robinrs]

I can soooo relate, I have a TERRIBLE fear of putting my face underwater, which continues to this day!

My son, thank God, has no fear of water (I never let him know or see mine) and we go to the pool everyday. He is teaching himself to swim and yesterday did a backstroke from one end of the pool to the other! I just held my breath!

It can be so scary when our babies go through something that we know they have a reluctance to. Congratulate her when she makes every effort, be her biggest cheerleader and NEVER let her see YOU sweat!

God bless,

Robinrs

 

[Bob Slydell]

4 seems like an young age to be jumping from the diving board? Will the teacher be there to catch her??

I hope she's given the option to pass on the jump if she's too scared -- nothing good can come from forcing her to do something she's not comfortable with. Kids learn to swim at different paces and need to be dealt with individually.

 

[EsmeraldaX]

Good for her! I'm sure she'll do fine. I was always terrified of water when I was little, and then my mom told me to just pretend I was a dolphin or a mermaid. (I had a wild imagination!)

I think though, that this swim instructor is pushing the kids a little fast for their ages. Have you talked with her about it?

 

[Cruisin]

It does seem to be moving a little too fast for beginning swimmers to expect them to jump off of the diving board on their second lesson.

The instructor expects you to drop your 4 year old off and does not allow you the option of watching what is happening with her lessons?? I think that would concern me just a little bit.!!

Yes I agree that kids should learn how to swim but I am not sure that this is the best way to teach them, especially those who are timid about it.

When my daughter was 4, I tried to put her in swimming lessons. The first class she sat on the side of the pool, cried and fussed and would not get in the water at all. So I took her out of the lessons. But after spending time at the neighbours pool, by the end of the summer she was jumping off the edge, going under water and thoroughly enjoying herself in the water.

Some kids just need a little slower pace to be comfortable.

 

[WDSearcher]

For goodness sake ... if she dislikes the class and you're this afraid for her safety, take her out of the class and find another one! Surely this isn't the only swimming class in town.

As for the diving board ... I doubt that they're going from the 10m or anything like that. It's probably no more than a diving board that you'd find at a family pool, and I imagine that the reason the instructor does this is because kids are fearless. They take one swimming lesson and then figure they'll be fine jumping off the diving board at a friend's pool. This is most likely the first-hand way to show them just how deep the water is and what it's like to jump from the diving board.

It sounds like this instructor has a great reputation and a good success record. If kids were being traumatized by jumping off diving boards or made to work too hard too fast on a regular basis, she wouldn't still be in business. But each child is an individual. If you're worried that the class is too much for your daughter, move her to something less intense.

 

[debster812]

I am sure everything will be fine, but as a former lifeguard/swim instructor/pool rat, 4 years old is TOO YOUNG to force them to jump off a diving board. We had a child/parent class, that at the end of a 12 week session IF THE CHILD WANTED TO, they could go off the diving board, and be caught by a lifeguard.

At this age, all their experiences get so overmagnified in their heads, that if she does get spooked by the diving board, it could be a couple of years before she is comfortable enough to try it again.

All that being said, it sounds like the instructor does have a great success rate, I just worry about the pressure on the kids.

Just my .02c

Debbie

 

[Beth E. (NJ)]

I'm sending pixie dust. I hope your daughter does real well. I can sort of understand (from the teachers point of view) why they don't want the parents there. When my dd was in preschool they swam once a week. When I snuck in to the bandstand to watch the kids always spotted us --= and the bandstand was up and behind a wall!

I was a nervous child and I don't know if I would have risen to the challenge of going off a diving board.

I hope your daughter has a great day!

 

[Beth76]

The "swim nazi" might very well be an excellent teacher, but she may not be a good fit for your daughter. I agree that it is very important to learn to swim and not to be afraid of the water. However, your DD shouldn't be forced into it. Perhaps you should find another class that doesn't rush things. Learning to swim in one week seems really faced-paced to me. Good luck to your daughter.

 

[dizagain]

Pixie Dust your daughter's way!! I'm sure she will be taken care of, although she may be unhappy. I don't know, my younger DD, now 8, was always leary of swimming. She would put her face in some and splash around, etc. Finally at 7, I made her take lessons. She jumped in and swam across the pool in perfect free-style and returned with a perfect backstroke! The teacher was floored (me too - and I was allowed to watch) - and moved her up to another group which she ended up hating because the kids were older! You can't win!

Anyway, I think that if your DD is still crying about it today, she may just not be ready for lessons or at least not this particular teacher. I know it's hard to make the call - do you make her finish what she started or allow her to quit? Go with you mommy instincts on this one even if they tell you to quit. Good Luck!

 

[KristiKelly]

Well, I picked DD up today, the teacher did not have them jump off the diving board today. She said that is for kids who want to - on the 2nd day, it is not a high dive it's only about a foot or so above the water. She does encourage it by the end of the week. DD did jump off the side all by herself & unlike yesterday was very excited & proud when I picked her up. This instructor does nothing by force but does not allow parents to watch. I was allowed to watch DS with his 1st swimming lessons - which he did not do well and he had to retake somewhere else.

Please understand - I was not looking for criticism for this instructor, but wanted pixie dust for my daughter, to help her get past her fears. I personally know of over 30 children who have taken lessons from her. Does she push these children - YES. She says that she doesn't "baby" their fears but gets them beyond there fears. She is very nurturing to these kids & says a prayer with them before each lesson. I know of previous students (with big water fears) who give her hugs now when they see her. I don't think if she was doing anything "mean" that these kids would hug her. I picked DD up today & she was smiling telling me "Mommy, I did good!!!" So I guess Pixie Dust does help. She is no longer afraid to put her face under the water or jump off the side & was telling me how she uses her arms to swim - after only 2 days.

 

[Bob Slydell]

I'm glad it went well

 

[dizagain]

So glad to hear it went well! I know you feel better now!