To not want the teacher to hold my dd's ankle so she can't win the swimming races?

[fardyharp]

dd3 is an excellent swimmer. She swims out of school three times a week and is very keen and dedicated. She has just started swimming lessons with the school and is by all accounts very far ahead of others in the class. This is fine and I still think good fun for her to go and learn to get on a coach and get changed with her mates etc etc. But she is getting really fed up because the teacher has started 'playing tricks on her' so that she can't win all the little races that they do at the end, either telling the others to go first (ok fair enough) but now grabbing her ankle as she turns. I think this is dangerous! She's only 8. She obviously hasn't said anything but she hates it :-(

She can't move up to an older group as they only take one year group at a time.

[Catmint]

Could your DD pair up with a less confident swimmer and be a mentor?

Def agree, awful behaviour & talk to school.

[morethanpotatoprints]

This whole attitude annoys me.
Everybody is good at something and should be allowed to participate.
My dds last school there was a girl who in y2 was ahead of y6 dc at running. She is training for future Olympics now at 10 years old.
sports Day was a nightmare because she won everything.
The school tended to look at the second place as the winner and everybody including the girl and her parents were fine about this.

[Martorana]

What good will it do anyone for a club swimmer to be regularly competing against the kids who are learning to swim in school swimming lessons? Seriously? Why does the OP's dd even want to race against people she can probably lap?

[Echocave]

Technically this is assault and if you were angry enough, you could give the school a hard time over this. I know a few parents who'd be straight off to the Governors for this. I don't think any teacher should ever grab a child unless it's to stop them from hurting themselves or others. The idea of this teacher attempting to 'surprise' your daughter by doing this mid-race is grim. Frankly, who does he think he is?

[ICanSeeTheSun]

Would they do this to someone who is talented in another way.

If they want to challenge her more, there has to be a safer way.

[ICanSeeTheSun]

Perhaps asking her to bring in clothes to go over her costume.

It's also practical as nobody ever falls into water in swim wear.

[BoffinMum]

FFS.
Do they cover the eyes of children good at maths so the others can catch up?!
Or sabotage the books of good readers?
The teacher needs to understand that differentiation is necessary for all subject areas and sports, and it is not acceptable to do this. I would speak to the teacher and say to her that if it didn't stop, I would be forced to take the matter to the Head.

[MarshaBrady]

If I imagine someone doing this to me whilst I am swimming I imagine my reaction would be to kick hard. Terrible teaching.

[Martorana]

It's not that she's turned out to be particularly talented at ordinary school swimming lessons- she's a club swimmer who trains three times a week and who is on a development programme! She doesn't need to prove herself to herself or anyone else. It's just bonkers that she's racing with the others. She's probably lapping them!

[AcrossthePond55]

I had the same problem years (and years) ago as I was a very advanced swimmer. Our teacher had me spend time teaching/coaching the other students as well as giving me a 'handicap' in races, either by making me swim a more difficult stroke or giving others a head start to make the race 'more even'.

One of my best memories is teaching a fellow student in that class to swim who was deathly afraid of the water. The day she jumped off the high dive and swam to the side of the pool still makes me smile.

The teacher should NOT be grabbing your child. He/she should be encouraging her by using her skills to the best advantage.

[whois]

So many ways the teacher can make this more even - giving the others a head start, getting your DD to swim a slower stroke, having her race the stopwatch rather than the others, using her as the starter.

Grabbing her ankles is shit.

[WeAllHaveWings]

they should challenge her by letting others get a head start or let her wear clothes/weights as others have suggested, but just enough so she has a fair chance of winning.

The same way someone in the top set at maths or English would get differentiated work from the bottom set.

Grabbing ankles with no warning is not right.

[parentalunit]

So unfortunate. Hope your daughter doesn't have to go through this again. Don't feel bad seeing the school, you're doing the right thing for your daughter.

Oh and in my opinion, she shouldn't team up with a weak swimmer...she should team up with swimmers who are even better than she is.

I do love England generally, but this mentality of keeping everyone the same is very frustrating. Your daughter sounds talented, I hope you get her the support she needs to excel.

[Aspiringhuman]

Sounds horrible and dangerous. I was really bad at all sports at school and it horrifies me to think that someone would be dangerously sabotaged for my sake. What does it teach the others? That it's ok to risk drowning someone?

[parentalunit]

Oops, just read that she's a club swimmer. Could you ask the club coach for advice on this? There may be areas which daughter needs to practice, and she could go off to one side during races to get the extra practice she needs. I doubt that winning races against her class mates is too much of a thrill for her in any case

[Aspiringhuman]

Yy

[bluesbaby]

I was the same at school. I learnt how to swim with clothes on and did diving practise instead. Also practising treading water for long periods of time (general life saving skills moving towards the skills needed to pass a lifeguard test).

Could they do similar?

[Andrewofgg]

Raise fifty sorts of hell until it stops. The sort of nonsense you expect to read in the Daily Hate Mail. She's a better swimmer so she will win. Which part of that puzzles these educated teachers?

[Wibblypiglikesbananas]

That is shocking. I'd be very tempted to write to the school and tell them that DD won't be attending swimming lessons for the foreseeable as she has an 'injury' caused by the teacher grabbing her leg. And then sit back and wait and see what happens...

[Martorana]

Nobody will explain to me why she would want to race against people she will probably lap! What possible pleasure could a club swimmer on a development programme get from beating a group many of whom have probably just started?

And I don't get the fury about the foot grabbing to be honest. My children woul have though it was funny. And if she really doesn't like it, I hope she isn't going to take her swimming to higher levels. Sadly.

[fardyharp]

She's 8 years old and compliant, if she's told to race she will! It's a lesson, wanting to or not doesn't really come in to it.

[fardyharp]

Martona you clearly don't know much about swimming. Dd1 has swum at regional level for years and I don't think anyone has ever grabbed her ankle.

[fardyharp]

Dd3 doesn't lap her group, she's not an olympian quite yet. If they have to swim 50m she will finish half a length ahead.