[Snook182]

O.k. here goes....I am wanting to put my little girls in lesson's (both 3 years old) and I am wondering if any of you have you little one's in lesson's @ 3 years's old, or you think they are too young?My dad seem's to think i should wait 1 year and they will understand more next year??I would love your opinion on this!
thank's a Bunch!

[hbrown22]

I don't think it is too young. Emmi started swimming lessons when she was 3. It was mostly safety first, they teach them how to get back to the side if they fall in a pool and how to turn over and float on their backs. Now, she is 4 1/2 and can freestyle and backstroke the whole length of the pool. I can't believe all that she has learned. So I say go for it, it's never to early, especially if they love the water like my daughter does. Swimming is one of those skills that is necessary to know and little ones soak up everything and learn quickly (pun not intended, really)!

[adptalex]

I just signed my daughter up for lessons today! She is 22 months old. We are going to start on Thursday and go twice a week. I don't think it is too early!!

Cindy

[cborsa7]

My son has taken swimming lesson's since he came home at 9 months. He loves, LOVES, to go under the water now. We still attend a mommy & me swim class but he will soon be able to be on his own. I don't think he finds a need for me there anymore, lol.

I don't think they are to young as long as they show an interest. Have fun!

[rapf777]

NEVER to early to start on swimming lessons. Dh was a life guard in his younger days and he would see all ages taking lessons. Us living in Florida and have a HUGH lake behind us we felt it was pretty important to start. We wanted to start when she got home but a lot of unforseen incidents happened. She is in her 3rd lesson and I am also signing her up for another class right after. She LOVES her lessons. Hope this helps.

Rose

[loveajax]

DD started at about 2.5 (we tried earlier, but she just didn't like it!). She will be 4 in May and can swim underwater, dive into the pool, etc. It's wonderful! They will have so much fun!

[DianeS]

Well, you're both right. At 3, (if they like the water) then lessons will teach them a few things. And next year at 4, they'll understand more than they will at 3.

But they'd understand more at 5. And even more at 6. And even more at 7. And so on. If you waited until they'd understand "everything" they'd be at least in their teens before you could send them!

So the point is - will they understand "enough" to enjoy themselves in the water and keep wanting to go back? Will they understand "enough" to learn whatever your point is in sending them? (Fun, or safety, or whatever) If the answer is "yes, they'll understand enough", then this year might be the right year to start teaching them. And if the answer is "no, there is an issue here and they won't understand enough", then next year might be the right year to start teaching them.

[Slatond10]

I agree w/ other PP that 3 is not to young. My only caution would be ... DD was 3 last summer and took swimming classes. There are different personalities @ this age as far as water is concerned and some previous thread had a similar experience. out of the 6 children in class... there were 2 that excelled and did GREAT, 2 that their fear increased w/ each class and 1 that cried the entire class and 1 that cried only during certian tasks.

My child's fear increased w/each class because they were supposed to put their head under the water an extra time each class and as the 2 excelled they went under more and her fear spread thru all activities.

Another mother @ daycare just kept doing swimming lessons over and over until her child got over the fear. I elected to just play and make it fun for DD? She is not over her fear yet though.

Good luck. Hopefully your child will love it and excel.

[JustBarbara]

Swimming lessons at 3 really are to get the children comfortable in the water, getting their faces wet, learning basic skills - kicking, blowing bubbles etc. I was a pool director/lifeguard in college and had kids starting at 4 if on their own. Most places will have mommy/ daddy and baby classes from oh -birth to 36 months old. At that point they usually switch to kid in the water only with parent watching. DS took a class at 2 and loved it - so did I - we made it into a playdate with another mom and child. DS loves, loves the water and when we stay away from home I like to make sure there is a pool - his favorite part is to jump in the water and be completely submerged. They even had a slide to go on and he was the daredevil in the group. Other kids were stoic and others were crying. I learned to swim in an outdoor pool in Germany when I was four and got my first swimming badge at 5 - swimming on my own for 15 minutes without touching the sides of the pool. I would say if your child is afraid please don't push it. Try some other way to get them to like the water - get silly with them, show them it doesn't hurt.

[akasohappy]

Kate just turned 3 and she started her first swim lessons almost 2 weeks ago. She loves them.

[dac_cincy]

Bug came home at 21.5 months- that fall we started the mommy and me classes- he loved it. We did another session of mommy and me and I felt he was ready for swim classes becuase he was bored in the mommy and me classes (s the oldest in the class)

I signed him up for classes this past fall- he was now 3. DISASTER!!!
He refused to get in the water with the teacher- he refused to sit on the side of hte pool. He cried, he made himslef sick- I think I posted about it out here. His best friend was also in teh class and her behavior was pretty much the same.
So long as he did nto have to get in the water with the teacher, he was fine in the water. He even started swimming on his own while we were on vacation.

He loves the water- he just refused to be in the water without me.

So my advice- ask to try the class one time- offer to pay just for the class and see how your child does with being in the water without you. No sense in wasting moeny for lessons that your child will not participate in.


We are going to try again this summer since Bug is more willing to do things without me.

Love to you,
Deb

[Emster]

I just signed my barely 3-year old son up for lessons at the Y a half hour ago! As a child I was always afraid of the water, and didn't want that for my kiddo. Well, turns out that my kid is the total opposite--I had to keep him from jumping into a lake last year, he never wants to hold on to me in the pool, and thinks its a hoot to put his face into the bathtub water! Scares me to death, so I'm hoping lessons will help give him a little sense and me a little peace of mind. If he acts scared I'll push a little but not too much. If we lose our money, we lose it, but I want to give it a shot before we head to vacation in June.

[JGarrick]

Originally Posted by Snook182

I am wanting to put my little girls in lesson's (both 3 years old) and I am wondering if any of you have you little one's in lesson's @ 3 years's old, or you think they are too young?My dad seem's to think i should wait 1 year and they will understand more next year?

I have to agree with DianeS on this one - there's no end to that "wait a year" line of thinking. She'll know more at 60 than she will at 59 too. So what? IMO, it's never too early to start. At this age, all they typically teach is some basic pool safety stuff, and getting them to put their face in the water. The rest is just splashing around and having some fun. My kids all started as soon as they were potty trained.

[annaguat]

Definitely put them in. Try and find a class that is focussed on pool safety and not specific strokes. My children all learn to "swim" at 2-3 yrs old. Because of their head size compared to the rest of the body it is hard for very young children to swim using traditional strokes. They can however learn to swim under the water and come up for breaths. They should be thought to swim to the side and then work their way over to the stairs. Anna

[Larue]

Sabrina is 3, and starts swim lessons in June. We recently started we're taking her to the pool every Sunday for family swim hour to get her used to it. She was a bit fightened the first time. An indoor pool with lots of kids splashing around can be a bit noisy. But now she loves it. Here's a picture of her and DH her first day at the pool. I agree with the others, it's never too early to start getting them used to the water.