Swimming lessons - I feel too nervous putting ds into group lessons.

[tacal]

Hello,

Ds is 5 he has HFA, sensory issues and motor difficulties. He can happily swim about the local pool with me with his arm bands on and a noodle. He tried a lesson today and said he enjoyed it but I was a nervous wreck.

He can not stand still and he had to stand in the water waiting when it was not his turn. He would jump about and fell over at one point and the life guard had to jump in to help him up. It felt noisy and chaotic. are all swimming lessons like this? We did lessons when he was 2 but it was different because I was in the water with him.

I don't want him to go back. Am I being an over anxious mum?

[itiswhatitiswhatitis]

Have you thought of 1-1 lessons? Or alternatively if you have a local baby swim teacher they often do smaller group lessons for older children. My ds is 6 and currently goes in a group for 4 year olds. They also use smaller pools usually rent school ones rather than big leisure centre pools. I was able to go into the pool with ds for the first few terms and now he does fine on his own.

[itiswhatitiswhatitis]

Sorry meant to say ds also HFA

[itiswhatitiswhatitis]

I don't think you are being over anxious at all. I'm always over cautious when I send ds to these things as I don't want to set him up to fail.

[tacal]

thank you itiswhatitis

I thought I was sending him to a group of 4 lesson but there were 3 groups in the small pool so looked really busy and all I could hear was shouting. There were 3 instructors in the pool but also the boss on the pool side shouting.


I am thinking one to one lessons might be better until I feel he is ok if he accidentally goes under.

[tacal]

can your Ds swim now itis

[tallulah]

My DD has ADHD, dyspraxia and Sensory issues. I would not send her to group lessons for the reasons you've described and because I'm sure she wouldn't be able to concentrate on the teacher shouting from the side with other lessons going on around her.

She has 1-1 lessons with a teacher in the water, at the same time the group lessons are on. It's quite a lot more expensive, but worth it for the peace of mind.

And yes they are all like that.

[tacal]

thank you Tallulah I think I will try the one to one lessons. I know they are double the price but I think it will be worth it.

[WhoKnowsWhereTheChocolateGoes]

If it is a local authority pool there may be assistance for children with SNs. My DS has 1:1 heavily subsidised at the local sports centre (costs about the same as group lessons) through a scheme run by the council, it's worth asking to see if you have anything similar. My DS has AS and dyspraxia.

[itiswhatitiswhatitis]

No not yet but to be fair my eldest who is NT had tons of group lessons but only actually learnt to swim once we started 1-1. I wanted ds2 to have the experience of being part of a group but I think once the summer term is up we will start 1-1. It may seem expensive but works out much better value.

[itiswhatitiswhatitis]

Although 1-1 is double the price it will be a full 30 minutes of swimming practice, no waiting at the sides so you may find you save money because he'll need fewer lessons

[Bilberry]

We have 1 to 1 lessons for my ds as he couldn't concentrate, had no fear of the water, and generally did not get on with them (waste of time and money). His private lessons are much better. His sisters (nt) have a private lesson with just the two of them and have done so much better than in group lessons. They do a lot more swimming as don't have to wait turns, specific issues are addressed straight away and they are pushed more. The lessons seem expensive but "££ for progress" they probably work out cheaper! (They were getting nowhere in their groups).

You will probably be quite nervous watching him in a private lesson though as they teacher can let him struggle a bit more before she intervenes as she is watching in the water right beside him. It is a lot less chaotic.

[smoggy]

My ds has also has high functioning autism with sensory and motor difficulties. He has been in group swimming lessons for 3 years now - his lesson is the first lesson on a saturday morning which is so early most people start the lessons but don't want to go every week so the child adult ratio is much better than any other lesson. The other advantage is the big pool is much quieter (older people swimming laps) so not lots of unexpected shrieks.

[AgnesDiPesto]

DS has 1:1 lessons he quite enjoyed group ones but couldn't concentrate or process the verbal instructions so made no progress, 1:1 has worked much better. The local pool does run asd specific lessons with extra helpers but theres more stimming than swimming going on. You might get some help from social services towards cost eg short breaks money etc. Often small pools eg hotel gyms etc have 1:1 lessons where only one lesson going on a time, again that works much better for DS, the fewer distractions the better. We also work in lots more breaks and rewards to keep him motivated whereas in mainstream lessons they get the reward / play time right at the end. DS needs short play / reward breaks all the way through.

[henryhsmum]

My DS is a member of the council's All In scheme for disabled children (a free scheme) and through that he has had one to one lessons for £5 then after he got his 10 metre badge, the lessons are now free! He also gets free admission at other times. We are not on any benefits other than DLA so this is not an income related scheme, anyone should be able to get it

[andimf03]

I would like to send my 4 years old daughter with PDD NOS to swimming lessons. Could somebody tell me whether she would need lessons for kids with special needs or just go with the regular lessons? I thought I could register her anywhere but when I went to a club, she got refused.
In case that she needs a special lessons, could someone tell me where I can find one in North of London?

[tacal]

thank you whoknows I will look into that at the council run sports centres.

[tacal]

thank you for all your replies. One to one lessons seems to be the best option. I will also check the pool will be fairly quiet.

Everyone else I know sends their kids to group lessons. You have reassured me that I am not completely mad to be wanting to pay for one to one.

I did not know of this scheme Henry I will look into but prob not available here (Scotland). Though I found some group lessons for disabled children available in a different council area (long waiting list). I will try to find out more about it.

[tacal]

hello andim do you think your dc would be ok in a group lesson? I would try to find as small a group as possible and a coach who has experience of teaching children who have special needs. Though, this is what I did and I felt it was not the best for ds. It was a small group but there were lots of small groups in the pool at same time making it very busy, noisy and confusing for ds. I also did not like the teaching method.

I feel that 1:1 lessons or a small group especially for disabled children will be the way forward for my ds. It may be a case of trying a few different classes to see what works best.

Good luck

[Kleinzeit]

My DS had one-to-one swimming lessons with Swimming Nature and I know two or three other kids with ASCs who do, too. They hire space in small pools in hotels, clubs and local schools so the pools were usually very quiet, it might depend on the specific venue though. They were very good at getting DS used to having his face in the water. Downside is that they’re not cheap, and they like people to pay for a set of lessons all at once so you might have to negotiate over getting a trial lesson. (andimf03 they do have lessons in North London)

[andimf03]

Tacal, Kleinzeit, thank you so much for the information. I really appreciate that.