I personally feel like you can start teaching basic swimming concepts at home starting from infancy to age 3. 3 years old I think is the perfect time to introduce traditional swimming lessons.
Do you guys teach your own children, or use an outside company (YMCA, local program, etc..)? What age did you start your child in swimming lessons?
I had them in pools as infants and then at or before 2 with a bubble (and without it too) just letting them doggie paddle before teaching them to swim at about 3 or 4. I liked starting with the bubble as way to gain self-confidence in the water before turning them lose. Others might not like the "crutch" but it worked well for us. In the summers we traveled to the house where my parents retired and they had a back-yard pool and lake, and the kids were in it many hours each day playing and learning to swim. I did work with them early on fr, bk, and br and maybe even a little fly. We started the oldest (boy) in a summer league swim team at about 6 and I think just hanging at the pool and playing with their friends was a great teacher too. A different set of friends than school or the neighborhood and that early socialization played an important role too, I think. My youngest (girl) was so enthusiastic about summer swimming with the team that she jumped in with somewhat older kick boarders at about 3-4 yrs. old.
The oldest is the "ice-breaker" and it is generally a little tougher for them - the younger siblings will follow the oldest. All three of ours swam winter USAS from about 6 thru HS. I pretty much stopped teaching/coaching once they started with coaches.
My experience growing up in the 50s was a little different, but also started out with a summer pool and lessons at about age 5, I think. I didn't like the lessons, but did enjoy the little 10 yard races at the club pool; it wasn't until joining the Y for winter swimming and their classes - pollywog, minnow, blue fish, whatever then eventually on to the team at about 7- 8. That's when i really caught on and started to develop an interest in the sport. I was the oldest and my younger siblings all followed into AAU swimming, and I think had a little easier time with it. There were lots of other people (coaches, parents, and older swimmers) who helped me along the way - that network was a significant factor for both my kids and myself. Good luck!
I had them in pools as infants and then at or before 2 with a bubble (and without it too) just letting them doggie paddle before teaching them to swim at about 3 or 4. I liked starting with the bubble as way to gain self-confidence in the water before turning them lose. Others might not like the "crutch" but it worked well for us. In the summers we traveled to the house where my parents retired and they had a back-yard pool and lake, and the kids were in it many hours each day playing and learning to swim. I did work with them early on fr, bk, and br and maybe even a little fly. We started the oldest (boy) in a summer league swim team at about 6 and I think just hanging at the pool and playing with their friends was a great teacher too. A different set of friends than school or the neighborhood and that early socialization played an important role too, I think. My youngest (girl) was so enthusiastic about summer swimming with the team that she jumped in with somewhat older kick boarders at about 3-4 yrs. old.
The oldest is the "ice-breaker" and it is generally a little tougher for them - the younger siblings will follow the oldest. All three of ours swam winter USAS from about 6 thru HS. I pretty much stopped teaching/coaching once they started with coaches.
My experience growing up in the 50s was a little different, but also started out with a summer pool and lessons at about age 5, I think. I didn't like the lessons, but did enjoy the little 10 yard races at the club pool; it wasn't until joining the Y for winter swimming and their classes - pollywog, minnow, blue fish, whatever then eventually on to the team at about 7- 8. That's when i really caught on and started to develop an interest in the sport. I was the oldest and my younger siblings all followed into AAU swimming, and I think had a little easier time with it. There were lots of other people (coaches, parents, and older swimmers) who helped me along the way - that network was a significant factor for both my kids and myself. Good luck!
