To let DS stop swim lessons?

[user1478188491]

DD age 8 has just completed Stage 4 (swim England) swim lessons and it’s been a struggle for a while to keep him motivated to go every week.
He can swim confidently and strongly and swim 25m backstroke and front crawl with good breathing technique.
If anyone is familiar with the system of the swim England they go up in Stages in percentages, it took a looooong time to get from 80-100% on stage 4 and he was getting disheartened each week realising he hasn’t moved up any percent.

Would it be irresponsible to let him finish now?
Or would it be ok to stop?

I am battling with the mental ‘It’s a life skill non negotiable’ view that comes with swim lessons however he can swim and unless they want to be in Galas or competitions is this enough?

WWYD?

I stopped when dd could swim the length of the pool because I knew she could swim safely to the side should she get into trouble in the pool.

Stage 4 really isn't enough to stop imho. 25m is only one length of a pool.

Not all swim schools bother measuring it by percentages, if that's off putting for him maybe try lessons elsewhere?

Will he do school swimming? I'd let him stop lessons outside school if there were goingto be school lessons instead

I'd try a different swim school without the percentage system. 25 metres isn't a strong swimmer and his technique isn't great if he's knackered after that, so I'd not let him stop but would let him change provider.

I stopped swimming lessons when I realised I was having a screaming row with ds every week. He was exhausted by them. He wasn’t doing as well as your son.

Learning to swim is important but swimming lessons aren’t. Tbh I think they’re a bit of a scam. We went on holiday together, swam every day for a week and he was confident after that. I’d stop without hesitation.

I don't tell my kids what % they are up to. As others have said 25m isn't far, and unless you are going to replace the lessons with taking him weekly he'll get out of practice and it'll undo loads of what he has learnt in the lessons.

We stopped at the end of stage 4. She had had enough and I felt a lot of it was the finer technique and stamina at that point. They start not being able to move up because they can't do 1 stroke out of 4 correctly. We just moved to swimming for fun.

Lots of people drop out around stage 4 and 5 and therefore classes become much smaller and more focused. If you could get through the next stage I think it would pay off long term.

I don’t either. They don’t worry about percentages, it’s all about what colour hat they’re on. That’s what gets them motivated. I say ‘Another few months and you’ll be a blue hat’ and that’s what they strive for.

I wouldn’t classify stage 4 as a competent swimmer so no personally I wouldn’t stop yet. All my did until stage 7.

Although the stages are supposed to be a standard, they are meaningless really because swim schools are restricted by the space... in Stage 4 (and5) mine could only do widths as that's all there was space for.

Are you confident to do the rest yourself? Self rescue, swimming in clothing, multiple lengths, getting stuff off the Notton of the pool etc?

25m is fine, especially as DC is not enjoying it. It will get her safely to the side in a swimming pool. Just make sure you keep that level up by going separately or including lots of fun swimming on holidays.

I think if they can swim well enough to do at least a length, dive in, all confidently and do not wish to join a swimming club for competitions then as long as they swim regularly then lessons can stop. DS can do crawl front and back but has a long way to go. He likes the lessons still. More difficult when they moan about it. Ours do life saving once a term too.

I wouldn't keep going if it's a battle every week. I'm not sure that's very conducive to learning. Could he have a break and go back in 6 months? My DC got back into swimming and improved their stamina when they wanted to do things like surfing and SUP after years of dull, ineffective, lessons at the council pool.

I think that’s enough personally. Just make sure you do swimming recreationally.

I'm happy for mine to stop when they can swim 200m. My reason being that if they can swim 200 m on a good day they will have the capacity to swim 10-15 on a bad day if they say fall out of a boat.
We do regularly swim in the ocean plus do kayaking etc. so good swimming is important for us.

Really depends. Mine were not allowed to stop (nor did they ask as it was standard and everyone they knew did it), until they could swim several km’s proficiently in good time without being stuffed.

However, we are a country surrounded by beaches, and if you get caught in a rip and are being towed out you need to know you will be fine to swim several km’s across and back in. It’s people who panic or can’t do that who drown here. Pretty much all adult drownings here, (excluding rivers where alcohol is generally a factor, or boat crashes where people are injured), are people not born here who have never had swimming lessons the way they are done here with this being the expectation, and think swimming the length of a pool is all you need.

Swimming Lessons!!!

If you are near water then swimming lessons are important but there's no harm in having a break

Stage 4 is nowhere close to a confident and strong swimmer. I do swim trials at our local club and the number of parents who say they’re stage 5 or 6 and very good …and completely fail to complete a length with a decent stroke is unbelievable.

Yes. Stop. Why would he need any more than that unless he wants to. The idea that butterfly stroke is a life skill is SUCH a scam!

I stopped when they could swim 1 length.

Totally agree! I also don’t see why you need continuing lessons to learn to swim longer than a length. If you can swim the length of a pool then surely it’s about building stamina to swim longer distance?

My measure is whether he'd be ok if he fell off a boat. Sounds like not.

Don't think perfect technique is essential, nor are swimming lessons. But 25m is a very short distance.

To me, the ability to swim at least 200-500 metres confidently, even on a bad day (so would need to be able to do longer typically), to swim in clothes, to know self rescue and ideally how to rescue others - those I think are essential. And in the UK, also how to cope with cold water shock, because if you fall in it will be actively cold most of the year, and we're a highly tidal island, so understanding tides, rips and how to safely manage those are important. Also things like pulling yourself out without using steps.

If you fall into water, it's likely to be a river or sea rather than a pool (lakes are cold but relatively less risky as usually no currents), so that's the hazard you're protecting against, and need to have skills for.

Wearing a life jacket off a dinghy? Or off a cross channel ferry…