DC is 8. School do swimming lessons in summer term of year 2 so DC and their classmates have missed out as they’re no Year 4 (3 form entry school, with several other 2-3 form entry schools around the leisure centre theres absolutely no way they can fit an extra 120-200 childrens lessons in I knew before school even said that DC would miss out).
They where in Stage 1 for almost 2 years but I thought that was due to covid. They moved to Stage 2 in November 2021 so coming up to a year now.
According to the online progress thing (each child has an online account where progress can be checked ready for the next Stage) they’re 51% of the way through stage 2 and that only went up after 2 months stuck on 48%, so given that I reckon it’ll be another 12-18 months in Stage 2.
DC is losing heart with it, keeps going because they want the Learn to Swim Badge for their Camp Blanket (they’re also a Scout), but is finding it very frustrating. They’re now the oldest in their group by almost a year. Their friends at school are Stage 4 and above so they’re finding it even more frustrating.
I’ve changed classes as we were at a very awkward time before but it’s made little to no difference in terms of progress.
It’s costing me £30 a month for a 45 minute lesson once a week and access to the pool at two other times a week which we do use so they are practising. Which I can afford but would be good to have the extra money.
The only reason I haven’t given up with it yet is because they have a muscle condition that is really helped by swimming. But they keep trying to get out of going by saying their ill or their muscles hurt (we’re supposed to push through depending on the pain level and whether it’s managed with calpol or not – DC is under orthopedics and physio for their condition) and it's horrible to have to force them. They do enjoy the actual lessons though, they're just finding it hard to keep at it.
There are no other options for pools locally so it’s give it up or not.
So WWYD? Stick at it or give it up knowing they’ll get no other chances with school?
AIBU?
WWYD about swimming lessons, 8yo seemingly making no progress
SwimmingGoingBadly · 15/10/2022 17:13
Am I being unreasonable?
29 votes. Final results.
POLLunderneaththeash · 15/10/2022 17:14
one of mine got no where with group lessons and we did some private ones instead and learned to swim well in a couple of months!
One other thing you could do is to take him swimming inbetween lessons so he has a bit more time to practice
Appleandoranges · 15/10/2022 17:17
Have you talked to their swimming teacher? They may not be updating the online progress score appropriately. The other children may be doing more swimming in their spare time.
FatAgainItsLettuceTime · 15/10/2022 17:18
What's left in the stage for him to tick off? Are those things being done in the lessons?
We had a weird bit where DD got stuck not progressing and it was because there was a steady stream of new kids moving up into the stage so every week they were hitting the same things that she had already ticked off. I had a chat with the teacher and asked when they'd be doing those things, and within a couple of weeks she'd moved up.
Bananarama21 · 15/10/2022 17:20
Hi op I'm a swimming teacher, can you explain what progress your child is currently? Can they swim frontcrawl 5 metres and go on their back for 5 metres? Do you take them swimming inbetween lessons. I find parents who do this, children progress faster as they are practising the skills learnt in the lesson. 30 pounds for 45 minutes is very good but I'd wonder if they are losing focus after a while especially if their muscles hurt. We do half an hour sessions 54 pounds a month. How many are in the class? It sounds like they could benefit from. 1 to 1.
Appleandoranges · 15/10/2022 17:25
Also your child is still really young at 8. They often get stuck at one level for quite a bit and then suddenly progress a lot. I would probably stick at it until they are good swimmers. As a parent you can encourage them into the water now and take them for lessons but not when they are teenagers. Appreciate it’s tricky though. Especially with costs.
BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 15/10/2022 17:29
Our local council estimates that the kids should expect to be in each stage for 10-12 weeks. Obviously there are exceptions to this (some sail through, some need more time), but I'd suggest your pool is doing this to keep the money coming in.
2 years at stage one!? That's completely unacceptable. They are not doing a good job.
Bananarama21 · 15/10/2022 17:33
It's likely his muscle condition is affecting his swimming, can I ask what the condition is? I have a child with a muscle condition in my stage 5, she's working towards 50 metres but doesn't have a powerful leg kick. Is the teacher aware of the condition. If I had a child in a beginner stage wanting to advance on frontcrawl I'd work on strengthening arms. So supporting them with a woggle under the arms to their chest and get them to swim with their arms. If they have reduce movement in their legs for example using floats and doing an arm pull will be harder. Same as going on back, I get the child to incorporate a sculling action to aid them on their back. A decent teacher can recognise limitations and adapt to meet the pupils needs. I hope that helps.
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Bananarama21 · 15/10/2022 17:33
It's likely his muscle condition is affecting his swimming, can I ask what the condition is? I have a child with a muscle condition in my stage 5, she's working towards 50 metres but doesn't have a powerful leg kick. Is the teacher aware of the condition. If I had a child in a beginner stage wanting to advance on frontcrawl I'd work on strengthening arms. So supporting them with a woggle under the arms to their chest and get them to swim with their arms. If they have reduce movement in their legs for example using floats and doing an arm pull will be harder. Same as going on back, I get the child to incorporate a sculling action to aid them on their back. A decent teacher can recognise limitations and adapt to meet the pupils needs. I hope that helps.
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