Less able child in swimming lesson

[swimminglessonadvice]

I’ve name changed as I’m aware I’m not coming across as kind or compassionate; an older less physically able child with physical and other special needs has joined my daughter’s swim classes. For context we pay £40 a month, there is 5 in the group and it’s a 30 minute lesson.

The swim teacher is having to spend a disproportionate time of the half hour handling the child who is less physically able and it’s leaving the other 4 kids treading water; waiting for a while, for example on backstroke, the rest of the children are able to lay back and swim a length. The less physically able child is having to be guided all the way on the length of water by the teacher.

I don’t want to complain but it feels like I’m just watching my DD paddle around waiting for what is essentially £10 a lesson.

I don’t want to move swim school but unsure on what to do.

This is so tricky isn’t it? My ds ended up in a lesson with a child with additional needs who took all of the teacher’s attention. I felt really bad about it because everyone deserves to learn to swim and I massively believe in inclusion - my dc go to a very inclusive school and I know are impacted in various ways by this but they also gain from it - but the impact was my ds getting zero teaching week after week. In the end I just moved his swimming lesson time to avoid the situation.

I didn’t feel able to complain and didn’t want the other child to end up excluded so felt that was the best way to handle things. Possibly it makes me a horrible human being.

@Yourebeingtooloud I know what you mean but DD loves her little group. I’ve observed the lesson this morning, the others are doing backstroke no support; the less able child is using a float and the teacher who would ordinarily not be in the water with this group is guiding the child with a back of neck support; she’s not listening to instruction so well: is clearly nervous; taking longer to pull herself out of the water while all the other kids are waiting at the other end of the pool.

I don't think your not being compassionate. It sounds like (regardless of their additional needs) that this lesson isn't suitable for their needs. And that the child would be better off in a class with other children of the same swimming ability.

My child got moved down a swimming group because they couldn't keep up with the other children. I think it happens along with children moving up a group.

For this to work the less able child should have an assistant in the water with her. How old is the group and how good are they at swimming? It sounds like they are competent enough for it not to be a huge safety issue. Still, they are in the water without the full attention of the instructor. Are the lessons under British Swimming? Maybe they can advise. The girl struggling to swim should be the priority, for water safety purposes, but this may mean 1:1 lessons for her.

YANBU - you have paid for a lesson and your child is not getting the full time being taught to swim . I believe in inclusivity but also with safety and suitability. Sounds like this child would benefit more in a 1-1 setting where their safety and learning needs could be met better .
It's a tricky one but inclusive does not mean that everything can be made to work .

One of my DC has SEN and the leisure centre arranged for an extra teacher to be in with him. But I did have to go and speak to the office, get it added to his file on the system that he needed extra support (and more than one remind them when they forgot to get the extra teacher 🙄)
Maybe they've asked for help and it's just not been sorted?
Maybe speak to them first and ask what provisions they can put in place to ensure everyone gets the support they need? It doesn't sound very safe either if the teacher is only focused on one child.

Tricky. You're not unreasonable. The child probably needs 121 lessons. As the mum of such a child I can tell you that where I live that costs me £22 per lesson as opposed to the £27 per month I'd pay for a group lesson. Not everyone can afford that.

If you don’t want to move swim school and don’t want to continue as things are there are three options I can see:
-complain to the school that your DD is being short changed in the lesson and ask them to provide enough teaching support for your DD to learn at her previous pace
-switch her lesson to a different time slot in the week if one is available
-talk to the teacher about options for your DD to be involved in sharing her skills with the less able pupil. Done well, this can be a great way of consolidating learning and gaining additional understanding for the more able pupil.

There is also the option of speaking to the other parent and explaining that you feel her child is taking up an unfair share of resources and that she should seek an alternative, more appropriate lesson, if one exists. You’d be surprised, perhaps, to learn how many parents chose this option when they feel that a - literally disadvantaged - child is gaining an ‘unfair advantage’ over their own.

Sadly in my kids’ swimming lessons there are about 12 kids sometimes, which does mean a bit of sitting around/treading water/waiting. I say put up with it or change your kid’s lesson. 🤷🏻‍♀️

There is also the option of speaking to the other parent and explaining that you feel her child is taking up an unfair share of resources and that she should seek an alternative, more appropriate lesson

What an incredibly shitty thing to suggest.

Change swim times.

Your daughter will only be friends with this group until she progresses to another level/while they are all swimming on the same day and times. This will automatically change anyway as they progress at different speeds and other activities clash.

You got there before me but I was in the process of quoting the same. Wtaf?!

It sounds like - regardless of SEND - this child just doesn’t have the swimming ability of the others in the group and therefore this isn’t the right group for them (& swimming is an activity that is usually taught in ability groups). Maybe the parent gave a different view of how able the child is at swimming and they’ll move their class soon now they’ve seen what they can actually do?

Well yes, that was rather my point.

It is very shitty but people do it, and they think it even more often.

Talk to the swim school nicely , you don't have to complain, they should have similar ability groups .
move your child to another time slot. She'll get used to another group.
Do not approach the other parent, that would be awful!

I don’t think the pp was suggesting this as an actual option the OP should take. But this is a thing a lot of people will do (not seeing the bigger picture of equality vs equity).

I hope you are joking about speaking to the other parent! I can't believe what you've just written there. It's awful. Have a word with yourself.

OP please, please do not do that.

My child has additional needs and I pay for 1-1 lessons (which, as a pp said is very expensive it's well over double the price of a standard lesson). I use my child's DLA to fund it. But, obviously, this isn't an option for many parents.

I agree OP, despite my disgust at what the quoted poster has said, that I also wouldn't be overly happy in your shoes. The child should be included, but they absolutely need another adult in the pool with them to guide/assist whilst the instructors takes the class. The instructor shouldn't be doing this.

I'd perhaps speak, privately, to the instructor.

I highly recommend 1:1 lessons - for all types of swimmers.

Swimming pools are just too echoey and noisy to focus on anything!

We found that 1 x 1:1 lesson was equal to 6 weeks group swimming lessons in terms of progress.

😊

My DS has autism and for reasons like this post we are looking to pay the best part of £200 for private 1 on 1 swimming lessons.

I get where you are coming from OP I do it works both ways my DD goes to group swimming lessons but for my DS he needs that one on one support and I don't want him missing out not being able to swim and I certainly don't want others to miss out on learning to swim because the swim teacher is too tied up with his needs.

Sadly though there doesn't seem to be a lot of equal swimming opportunities for those with ALN the classes that I have only ever come across require a parent to go in the water with them which to me defeats the whole point of learning to swim I want my son to learn and be able to swim confidently and be able to get himself out of trouble if he was ever to fall into water and not become reliant that either myself or my husband will always be in the water with him.

Perhaps you could have a word with the Swim school but it is a very awkward situation for all involved.

-talk to the teacher about options for your DD to be involved in sharing her skills with the less able pupil. Done well, this can be a great way of consolidating learning and gaining additional understanding for the more able pupil.

I really don't like this idea.
How would it even work? The other child seems to need 1 to 1 help from a qualified instructor, should she step aside and focus on the rest of the class while the OP's DD 'helps' the less able child? Do you think the parents of the less able child want their child to be taught by another child?

This may be ok in school where you are talking about maths, but not with swimming

It's tricky because there is very little provision for children with Sen to learn how to swim in some areas. I really struggled to find 1:1 lessons for my son and the local leisure centre were hopeless at helping. Speak to the organiser but don't speak to the parents - they may well already know that the clas is not ideal but have little choice

Same here. For that reason my ds had 1:1 lessons after his big sister had group lessons, and learned to swim in a tenth of the time!
Group lessons are a faff

If the instructor is in the pool supporting one child, who is watching the other students? Is this not a safety issue?