Should I pay a lot more for better quality swim lessons??

[KateRed]

Hello all.
I've just finished my first swim lesson with my 9 month old at our local leisure centre. It went terribly! The instructor had about as much personality as a wet fish, hardly spent any time in the water and didn't explain how to do things, I just ended up watching everyone else. However, the term is 15 weeks for £75, ah, there's the benefit!!
I previously had a trial swim lesson with him at a private pool which was so much better; the instructor was in the water from the start, engaged all the babies, explained to me how to hold him and move with him in the water. But they only do 10 weeks for £100.
He's only 9 months, does it matter to do the cheaper ones now and maybe pay a bit more later on? Or should I not be a cheap-o and would it benefit him to have the better ones from the onset!? Aggghhhhhh, I just don't know!!
Any suggestions gratefully received!

9 months???! I think you'd be better off concentrating on having fun and building confidence in the water, and leave the lessons til later.

Agree with SirChenjin - keep your money until he's old enough that lessons will be useful to him - just get in the water and play for now.

Save your pennies would be my advice! Take him down the leisure centre once a week for fun. Then when's he's older you'll have put aside loads for a better ratio class where he can have 1:2 teaching or similar. My son went to lessons from a young age (waste of good money with hindsight!!) but actual swimming- perhaps from about 3.5 has he actually started 'swimming'!!!

Brilliant, thanks all for the advice! We shall enjoy our splashing about!

I pay £17 a month for swim lessons at a local pool on the basis that if we miss them due to holiday/sickness etc. it doesn't matter. The aqua babies etc. is about £12 a lesson so loads more.

I am finding that dd is learning a lot after just 4 weeks and it is impressive to see her progress. (She is 22 months and starting to take a little instruction.)

My plan is to stick with these for a while and then invest in more expensive classes when she is a little nearer to swimming.

Honestly, these lessons won't have a huge impact on your child's swimming. I used them as a way of making friends- I am still friends with 2 families I met at baby swimming 8 and a half years later. It was a good thing to do in terms of having fun and gaining confidence in the water, both DS and me handing DS.

However, he had glue ear so we had to stop at 2.5 due to persistent ear infections. We started again at 3.9.

DS hated these lessons for a while, he then hated 'proper' swimming lessons at 5 because he had to put his face in the water. When he was 8 he swam 3,000m and qualified for county swimming championships- there's little link between baby lessons and later swimming I think.

I do pay for private lessons for my 2, but they are 4&6 and were not progressing in the group lesaons. I agree with the others, just enjoy splashing about and wait until your child is older

I started swimming lessons with ds when he was 4m and at 10m have stopped and will just take him for a splash about from now on and concentrate on lessons when he's old enough to take instructions. Whilst we both enjoyed the lessons and he is now happy underwater, I came to the conclusion that best save the money until he really is in a position to progress as there is a limit to what you can get a baby to do!