Young babies and children are instinctively drawn to water and this places them at great risk of being involved in water based accidents. Every year thousands of children throughout the world drown or die in water based accidents and no child is immune from this ever present risk. As more families construct swimming pools in their gardens, it is becoming increasingly important that children are given age appropriate swimming lessons to enable them to survive should they find themselves in trouble around water.
Babies as young as 6 months old can be taught to roll over in water, relax and breathe normally through their noses and float on their backs. Drowning amongst children who have had swimming lessons are very rare as they learn not only the skills needed to survive but being submerged head down in water does not leave them powerless to save themselves.
Skills are developed according to the age of the child. Motor skills are not developed enough in a younger child to co ordinate hand and leg movements and in a younger child, swimming involves the ability to have the face in the water and kick to swim or to float on the back. As the baby develops into toddlerhood and becomes a preschooler, swimming lessons will focus on developing a proper swimming technique that enables the baby to swim back to the safety of the side of the pool by themselves. Younger children learn to float on their backs until they can be rescued.
The key to choosing a venue for swimming lessons for your baby is to choose a venue that makes learning fun and focuses on reducing water anxiety and fear. Children should enjoy their play in the water and choice of swimming lessons must focus on the baby learning at his or her own pace. If this is the focus of the school you enrol your child in, their swimming lessons will be enjoyable and lots of fun for you all.