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Original poster

What is the point of baby swim classes / dunking

96 replies

HuntIdeas · 01/09/2019 05:45

Quite a few of my friends seem to be signing their tiny babies up to baby swim class, where they seem to spend a lot of time dunking the babies. What’s the point of this? Is it worth paying for the classes rather than just taking the baby myself?

One friend said they are teaching the baby what to do in case it falls into the water. To be honest, I’m pretty sure my baby won’t get a chance to fall into the water, plus if it did somehow happen then I would be close enough to jump in and rescue the baby without him needing to rescue himself!

OP posts:

Starlight456 · 01/09/2019 08:12

I did waterbabies with my Ds ( now 12)

Dunking is only part of it. We sang songs, he learnt how to hang in . He loved it. There were a couple of babies over the different classes I did who didn’t. I didn’t understand why they did it.

For us it was positive. My Ds did also slip in the pool once while playing on the side . While I was lose enough he wouldn’t if drowned and immediately swam towards him . He calmly popped up and swam to the wall. No stress no trauma.

soupmaker · 01/09/2019 08:12

I took DD2 to swimming "lessons" as a baby until I went back to work when she was 15 mo. I love swimming. It was the most middle class thing I've ever done and yes, we have the Nirvana photo! She's a great swimmer but it has nothing to do with those lessons as DD1 I just took to the local council pool every couple of weeks and she's a great swimmer too.

SudowoodoVoodoo · 01/09/2019 08:13

Mine have been going to the council pool for "lessons" since 5m. At first, it was just a nice parent/ baby activity. By the time I had my second, it was the only way I could manage to take a baby and toddler on my own. Toddler could sit on the side by teacher waiting for his turn, baby was in the car seat, then the play pen. As they got older, it turned more into games and independent movements before more formal swimming started at 4.

Are they brilliant swimmers, no (although one has dyspraxia which does help explain a couple of years of slow progress, but swimming in itself is a great activity for his co-ordination snyway). While they haven't rushed to pick up swimming strokes, they have good soft skills, confidence and aren't concerned about submerging which can be a major hinderence to push past. I took DS to a week of booster lessons for foundation stage at one point and there were a few like him nearly ready to move up and just needing a bit of a boost and a lot with no experience, some of whom took days to actually get into the pool from fear.

In the face of a large range of baby groups of dubious benefit, swimming has had the best benefit.

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Ragwort · 01/09/2019 08:18

Johnny yes, I just went to the local council run classes, not at all expensive (18 years ago so can’t really remember the exact cost), it gave my DS plenty of confidence in the water,, no poncey photos .... although I really didn’t enjoy singing nursery rhymes in the water with the other mums. But my DS loved it and it was a useful ‘activity’ when you are at home with a baby (& the leisure centre had a crèche so I could leave him there & do my own exercise class ).

museumum · 01/09/2019 08:19

It’s fun and a really bonding this to do together. We enjoyed it weekly from when ds was 11 weeks till the week before he started school and it’s still a favourite holiday trip. He was able to tread water by age 3 but that wasn’t really the point, it’s the unbridled joy he has in the pool. Also great to get a chance to be “fun mum” with him. There aren’t really any other sports you can share with a child so young.

Some people like to sing, we swim.

Minai · 01/09/2019 08:27

They’re all ridiculously expensive near me so I just took ds1 to our local pool myself. He loves swimming age 2 now. I don’t know what he would have got out of swimming lessons that he wouldn’t have got from having a splash in the pool with me by ourselves to be honest.

pimbee · 01/09/2019 08:28

I'm with you OP, my eldest started lessons as a toddler and is extremely confident now at 8 and swimming, he wasn't nervous when he started, I very much doubt starting him as a baby would have made a difference. My youngest was only able to start at 5 for medical reasons and though I wouldn't describe him as swimming yet (only been a couple months) he jumps in, head under and confident.

It's important but I don't think it needs to happen as a baby, though it's probably nice for bonding and getting out the house.

user1493494961 · 01/09/2019 08:34

Save your money, take the baby to the pool yourself and enrol them in proper lessons at 3/4.

BeanBag7 · 01/09/2019 08:34

If it was £4 a time I would definitely go. Around here the only "baby" classes were franchises like Turtle Tots or Waterbabies which were £15 for 30 minutes

user1539506092 · 01/09/2019 08:35

I've been taking my DC to baby swim school since they were both 8weeks. Albeit, live in a country where people do have pools in their gardens, but the school is very anti-dunking. Their approach is more safety-led, cues etc. My main reasons for going are confidence (I'm not the most confident swimmer, started late etc), bonding with bub & a bonus of them not being scared in the water & knowing what to do (in theory) if they fall in & what falling feels like.

thunderthighsohwoe · 01/09/2019 08:40

I had a champion 29 minute napper, timed to the second. After a baby swimming lesson we got two hours. I’d have paid double for that!

pennypineapple · 01/09/2019 08:44

This is an interesting thread, I had absolutely no idea dunking was a thing and even encouraged. I didn't do lessons but used to just take DD to the local pool sometimes when I was on mat leave and was always very careful not to get her head wet in case it scared her!! Thankfully she's 3 now and loves the water so doesn't seem to have done any harm.

somanyresusablebags · 01/09/2019 08:48

We do them and it is fun. My daughter and I have a lovely time together. It is a luxury I cherish. She never wobbled and we laugh a lot. My older kids learned to swim at the leisure centre, but that was less fun for me.

Happiedays · 01/09/2019 08:53

We do baby swimming lessons at the local leisure centre which are about half the price of water babies/ turtle tots. I've had lots of comments from friends about it being pointless, but we enjoy it and it gets us out the house. Its lots of singing and games at our lessons and so I dont see it as much different to going to baby sensory or jiggly wigglers etc. Not sure it will ever teach him to swim but he enjoys falling in to humpty dumpty and will turn himself around to hold onto the wall after...

SaffronFields · 01/09/2019 08:54

Basically I fell for the marketing, as a new parent wanting to do things right, feeling I would let my baby down if I didn't join in like everyone else. I am embarrassed that I signed up to it now and realise I was naive and just so keen to get things right.

Yep absolutely CherryPlum this was me. I took DD when she was only about 8/9 weeks. She had terrible colic, cried the whole time. The pool was cold. I don’t know what on earth I was thinking. Stressed me out to the max, and for what? I should have just stayed at home! I think there is way too much pressure on Mums now to be the perfect parents and be out and about with their small babies.

I did waterbabies first chapter then quit- got a cute pic to be fair. DD is starting swimming again soon now she is 14 months, I think we’ll actually get more out of it this time.

doadeer · 01/09/2019 08:54

It's £25 a class where i live. No way. I just take DS swimming myself!

SockQueen · 01/09/2019 09:13

We did them for about 18 months with DS1 like the dutiful middle-class parents we are. Stopped because we were doing the same things every week and the timing was no longer convenient. We still take him swimming occasionally and he loves it. I plan to get him in proper learning to swim lessons once he's 4-5ish (currently almost 3). We now have DS2 and haven't bothered with classes for him, just bringing him swimming in a warm pool every so often.

I'm a good swimmer and it's very important to me that my children learn properly and are safe and confident. I have realised, however, that baby swimming classes are a very expensive way to not really achieve this.

NewAccount270219 · 01/09/2019 09:21

I've been taking my now 14 month old since 6 months, when I went back to work and it became our fun Saturday morning activity just for us. I absolutely do not think he's learning to swim - he finds it fun, I like it, and we can afford it. I wouldn't do it if any of those things weren't true.

Am I the only one who finds it quite hard to work out what to do in a pool with just you and a baby?! I've done it and after five minutes I felt at a bit of a loose end, and I also felt very self conscious! I find it much nicer to take him to an organised class where the time flies by - but, again, we can easily afford it. I don't think DS would lose out at all if we just went to the local pool instead for half an hour, it's me that would enjoy it less.

NewAccount270219 · 01/09/2019 09:23

I do think that taking actual newborns is a waste of time. Before they can hold their own head up you're basically just carrying them around in the water for 10 minutes until they cry.

dementedpixie · 01/09/2019 09:27

I think is pointless for very young babies tbh. We just took them ourselves and then started proper lessons around age 3/4

ThisHereMamaBear · 01/09/2019 09:32

I took my baby to a swimming class when he was 6 months old. Dunked him once and he hated it. The instructor then said to dunk him again at the end of the lesson to get him used to it. Bonkers!

NewAccount270219 · 01/09/2019 09:34

The reason baby swim got my money, by the way, is that as a full-time WOHM I liked the idea of doing an activity for us on a Saturday, and it was the only one that ran at a weekend (this is pretty clearly because swimming is seen as the baby class than dads will do). I looked and the only other thing that runs on a Saturday in my area is something cringey looking at my local library called 'Daddy Cool' which I can't go to because I'm not a Daddy, and as we all know Mummies are at home all week and Daddies go to work.

Sunshine1239 · 01/09/2019 09:41

I’m with you op

Both mine went swimming with me from 8 weeks and into formal lessons from age 3

Other friends kids started at 5/6. Those who started later Leart to swim faster and so reached a certain stage at pretty much the same time

So I’m some ways I think I was had off financially starting earlier !

Thistles24 · 01/09/2019 09:43

I think it’s more about it being a bonding experience rather than the activity to be honest. When they’re tiny, it adds structure to your week, and in my case, now I’m back to work I have one day off so going to a class means we have to go out and get to spend fun time together, rather than me trying to work through a list of chores while entertaining DC.

HMArsey · 01/09/2019 09:50

IMO if you’re confident in the water classes are unnecessary until kids are learning actual strokes. I dunked DD as a baby, bobbed her up and down, swished her through the water etc. None of which required lessons for us.

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