Help Your Kids Learn to Love Swimming!

If you’ve got little ones, I’m sure you’re starting to think about what kind of life skills you want them to have, and surely swimming is near the top of the list. Not only should kids learn to love swimming because it’s fun, it’s an essential skill that can be life-saving, but it also gives kids a lot of freedom.

They’ll have the opportunity to try out for their high school’s swim team if they want, and so much more than that. They’ll never have the fear of the water when offered a day trip to a beach, or a stay at a hotel with a pool. Swimming gives your kids the gift of confidence in the water – and all the joy that a good splash around can bring.

If you want to turn your kids into little water babies, follow these tips and tricks.

1. Bath Time Is Your Ally

There’s a way you can guarantee your kids will take to water like a duck way before their first swimming lesson.

When you’re bathing your kids, introduce them to the sensation of water in their face and in their ears. They may not enjoy it at first – and they will let you know that – but persevere. This action lays the groundwork for successful swims.

2. Do a Parent & Child Swimming Class

To help your kids feel at ease in the water, get in with them! No one makes a little one feel as safe as Mom or Dad.

Parent and child classes usually run for kids from 6 – 36 months. These classes are a great way to introduce kids to the water; you do things like holding kids atop the water and getting them used to the sensation of floating on their back, as they have fun kicking and splashing.

3. Begin with Swimming Games

The best way to encourage a love of swimming in your kids is by making sure the pool is a fun place to be, and the easiest way to do this is with games. Play games like ‘Talk to the Fishies’, where you encourage your child to blow bubbles into the water, and then put the ear to the water to hear the fishies talk.

Another great game is ‘Catch the Fishies’, where you teach your child how to keep their fingers closed, to ensure proper swimming practice later. While you hold your kids, encourage them to plunge their arms into the water to catch fish. Kids really love this one if you are playful and silly with them.

While you’re doing this with your kid, make sure that you keep a big smile on your face – your kid will have more fun if they see you enjoying yourself!

4. Make Sure the Pool Is Perfect

Once people know how to swim, they get a bit less fussy about going in a pool with perfect conditions, but for kids, this stuff really matters – it’s the early impressions of swimming that lay the groundwork for whether or not your kid will love it.

Check that the swimming pool is warm enough; 80 to 82 degrees is ideal, because children struggle more in the cold than adults. Make sure the pool is clean, so as to not to irritate little skin; resources like poolcleanerhub.com can provide information about ensuring pool hygiene.

Your kid should have a comfortable costume too. Ones that are made of Lycra are the best, because the fabric doesn’t absorb water, leaving kids feeling light and breezy in the pool.

5. Lead by Example

Your kids aren’t going to learn to love the water if their parents act like they hate it. Lead by an example and take the dip whenever they do. If they’re doing independent swimming classes at one end of the pool, have a dip yourself and do lengths, while you keep your eye on them.

Your kids will be looking at you too, and seeing Mom or Dad have a ton of fun in the water will encourage kids to stick with it – they’ll want to have as much fun as you!