Best way to get apprehensive 6yo swimming?

[4fingerKitKat]

6yo DS hasn’t had loads of swimming experience (we take him to the pool occasionally for a splash about) and isn’t naturally water confident - nervous about getting his head in the water etc.

We’ve got three options:

1. keep taking him more regularly ourselves to splash about and focus on his water confidence (blowing bubbles, dipping his face etc)

2. sign up for group lessons

3. 1-1 lessons

I’m prepared to pay for a few 1-1 lessons but i don’t know if this is something they are likely to be able to ‘crack’ quite quickly (and then he could move on to group lessons) or whether it just needs gradual exposure via more regular pool trips. I could try him on a group lesson but I worry he’s not going to have enough support in that setting when he’s still a bit nervous and can’t really do the most basic things.

Thoughts?

I'd start with weekly pool trips as a family, and the more fun a pool you can find, the better, ideally with a shallow beach style entry, or a separate very shallow pool. Model lots of duck diving, swimming under his leg, who can glide the furthest on the surface etc - anything with your face in and under the water. Does he have well fitting goggles?

Then do 1:1 over the summer holidays plus fun swimming

I would do 1 to 1. DD started group lessons and we had to switch to 1 to 1 as she has no confidence, didn't want to do anything etc.

The 1 to 1 really helped her and she was able to go back into group lessons and now really enjoys it. It was more expensive but worth it in the long run.

Slow down. Building up confidence in the water takes lots of time. Ideally it should be as fun as possible. Can you take him yourself? We do lots of lifting up and down shouting whoosh!, chasing floaty toys (squirty bath animals), pretending to be a shark, jumping in (I catch him)...

He also has a 2 to 1 lesson weekly which I think helps keep up the body remembering what to do in the water, regular time in the water is the key really.

Are you confident in the water? If so, model that and you can't go wrong really. If you're nervous however then lessons will be useful to give him confidence.

@CMOTDibbler admittedly we probably don’t take him often enough but he can’t really do any of the things you mention - can’t really move himself around in the water, won’t put his head under etc.

He does need me to guide him to try to build up a bit of confidence about what he’s capable of which is why I thought a 1-1 might help him move forward. Though I don’t know if he just needs the time to gain confidence.

I’m a pretty confident swimmer these days and went to a pool regularly, but it took me until my 30s to be confident getting my head in the water, which took adult lessons for me to crack - so I’m aware that you can get through many years of swimming without nailing the basics!

What I was trying to say was that you do the playing around, showing him that the water is fun with no pressure on him to do anything other than splash around. Take a couple of woggles and enjoy floating on your back with your arms over them wiggling your toes at him. And if all he wants to do is jump off the side to you, or bobble around, no problems.
Has he got any friends where they and a parent could join you to increase the fun factor?

We have been with other friends before but it can be counterproductive as he finds it frustrating/upsetting that he can’t join in with what they are doing.

I think I am talking myself into the idea that a few 1-1 lessons might be worth a try, knowing what his personality is like.

DS did a week of booster lessons when he was in foundation stage. It was half children like him, stuck on the last skill or two of the stage or novices, many very nervous with little experience of pools. At the end of the week of 30min lessons, all had made great progress.

I'd probably go for fun sessions and 1:1 then build in group lessons.

We had this with DD. We did a few 1-2-1 lessons and they did the world of good for her confidence.

1-2-1 lessons worked for our nervous DD.

She'd got to the stage of refusing to get into the water at group lessons and attempts at 'fun' pool sessions with us became anything but. We got a recommendation for a local teacher at a small private pool (warmer, quieter, smaller) and I couldn't believe it when at the end of her first lesson, the teacher got her to jump in the deep end, quite happily! To build up that level of trust in a short time is a real skill. We'd originally planned on building her confidence short term then putting her back in group lessons but ended up deciding the cost of the private lessons was worth it and stuck with that teacher for a couple of years.

Ds didn't enjoy lessons until he had 1-2-1s. He went from not being able to swim at all without floats, and not really even wanting to get into the water, to swimming 10m in 5 lessons. He was swimming by himself in 2 lessons.
He was a bit older though.