swimming

[uptheirons]

Does anyone else have a son who hates swimming. We don't go to the pool often but I have tried him with swimming lessons but they made him jump in and go underwater which he dislikes. He doesn't like the water on his face. His school now use a pool 25 mins walk away and he refused to go last year. I feel bad because he is 9 and can't swim more than doggy paddle and most of the other kids in his class go to lessons and are good swimmers. He is the kind of child that if he wants to do something he learns really quickly but if he doesn't thats it. Any advice please!

Could you look at one to one lessons ? They are (obviously) a little bit more expensive than group ones but they will enable your ds to go at his own pace and have the teacher in the water with him at all times until his confidence is increased.

I think the problem is that you don't go to the pool often
If you go at the weekends and in the holidays with him with a beach ball and maybe somewhere with slides etc he'll get used to the water and being splashed etc in a fun way rather than in a scary, learning way

Do you swim yourself as in are you confident in the water?

Maybe try taking him yourself each week for 30 mins of working on improving basic ability on his front and confidence as far cheaper than privates, and to be honest at 9 and only on doggy paddle, it would further knock his confidence to be put with smaller/younger kids until he developes his confidence if you booked classes as would be classed as a "stage 1".

Once he has the confidence many pools do crash courses during holidays and offer privates. Once he has the confidence, this will be far better to invest then (rather than now) as then you would improve ability - which a teacher is best placed to do - where as most peple happy in the water can support with confidence issues.