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4 Things about Your Kid’s Body That Affect How He Learns to Swim

It’s hard to imagine that someday the kid who hasn’t even put his face underwater in the bathtub could be stepping onto the podium to accept an Olympic gold.  Safety and fun are the most likely reasons for teaching your child to swim, but just for kicks, let’s look at what goes into being a world-class swimmer.

I’m not talking about the obvious thousands of hours of practice and high-tech equipment that athletes turn into seconds shaved from their personal records, and I’m not talking about the minute details like how great swimmers sweat and spread their fingers.

I’m talking about the basics: the swimmer’s body.

What does the world-class swimmer’s body look like? Tall and lean with long arms and a long torso, big hands, and big feet. Does that sound like your child’s body? Probably not. So what are the differences that affect how he learns to swim?

4 Things about Your Kid’s Body That Affect How He Learns to Swim

1. Head Size

If he’s anything like the average, your child’s head is large compared to the rest of his body. In our early years, our limbs grow more slowly than the head and the rest of the body.

2. Lung Capacity

Kids also have less lung capacity than adults, not only overall but also relative to body mass. The ratio of total lung capacity to BMI in an average seven-year-old boy might be 1:10. In a seventeen-year-old, 1:2.5 is typical.

3. Body Mass

A kid’s body mass isn’t like an adult’s. They have a much larger surface area to mass ratio, which means they lose body heat more quickly. Often their body fat percentage is much lower than an adult’s, and this makes them less buoyant.

Their lower lung capacity and body fat percentage make floating much tougher for kids than it is for adults. They just aren’t as buoyant.

4. Rest and Recovery Needs

Those growing bodies also mean that kids need more rest than adults do. They go hard and crash hard. Rest and recovery time are important.

The better you understand what your kids are experiencing, the easier and more effective your teaching will be. Children’s bodies are different than adults’ bodies. Understanding these differences will help you to put yourself in your child’s place and respond to his needs. Responding to your kids’ needs will help to make the learning process fun and effective for all of you.

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The Adorable Toddler Trick That Reveals Your Kids’ Swimming Ability

Try this cute trick. Ask a toddler how big he is. When he lifts his hands, they’ll only reach the top of his head. It’s adorable, but it makes it tougher for the little guy to propel his head-heavy body through the water than it is for an adult, even one who isn’t a world-class swimmer. Ask your child to lift his arms straight up. The farther they extend beyond the top of his head, the closer to an adult’s his body proportions—and his buoyancy and maneuverability in the water—are likely to be.

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A Quick, Fun Trick to Stay Focused When You’re Teaching Your Kids to Swim

You know you have to keep your eyes on the prize: water safety, making your relationship stronger (not more frustrating or angst-ridden), and teaching your kids to associate the water and your lessons with fun and pleasure. Sometimes it’s tough to maintain that focus when things aren’t going smoothly. What do you do?

What you need is a–

Quick, Easy, Fun Way to Keep Focused on What’s Important

Write the key things you want to focus on and remember on an index card. Read the index card before every lesson.

Ask your kids to help you stay focused. Tell them that you plan to be patient and that you want them to be patient, too. Think of a code you can use if one of you forgets. How about “apple sauce” as the code for patience? Ask them to use the code if they think you’re forgetting to focus on being patient.

It may sound silly, but it works. Last Christmas, my son, who’s six, was putting ornaments on the tree. He broke one, and glass shards flew all over the room. In a rare moment of holiday spirit, I responded just right, calmly telling him that it was no big deal, it happens to everyone, it was replaceable, and that he was more important to me than any object he could possibly break. He mentioned that he wished I was always that calm when something went wrong.

Since then, “Christmas ornament” has been his code phrase to me to practice patience and put things in perspective. Not only does it never fail–and it’s put to the test a lot–but also it puts me in a grateful holiday spirit any time of the year.

You can use different code words for different aspects of attitude or different parts of the goal you want to stay focused on. If you’re starting to feel frustrated, hearing your child break out the “apple sauce” code will be enough to bring back your smile and remind you of your priorities. Safe. Fun. Happy.

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5 Things You Must Do to Succeed in Teaching Your Kids to Swim

Safety comes first, but an important part of your goal is to make learning to swim fun, for yourself and your child. In order to do that you have to bring certain things to the party. Here are the five things you have to do to succeed in teaching your kids to swim.

Practice Patience

If you go into this process with a deadline in mind, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment. Be patient with your child and with yourself. Don’t rush things. Think of the process as being as important as the goal.

Your patience will let your child relax and explore, which are both critical to learning. Your patience will also let you relax and explore. You’ll have the ability to pay full attention to your child’s progress without judging it, so you’ll be a better teacher. You won’t put pressure on your child or yourself, so you’ll both be able to enjoy each other and the process.

When you’re patient, you increase the possibility of finding joy in each lesson. Your child will associate that joy with the lessons and with swimming.

Have a Positive Attitude

While you may be focused on what you’re trying to accomplish, don’t forget to give your child plenty of encouragement, both in and out of the water. Be sincere and positive. Remind him that what you’re doing together is going to keep him safe and healthy and that it’s going to be lots of fun, especially long term.

Watch What You Bring to the Water

Ideally, you should have basic water safety, CPR, and first aid training. The Red Cross and hospitals often offer this training.

Kids read your body language and are attuned to your mental and emotional state. They’re aware of tension in your body and whether your breathing is slow and steady or fast and shallow.

If you’re afraid or concerned, your child will pick up on that. Until you’re over your own fear, you’re not in a good position to teach your child. (Rather, you’re in the perfect position to pass your fear on to your child.) In fact, if you’re afraid, it’s going to be tougher for your child even if you’re not the one doing the teaching.

Prepare yourself before you go into the water by focusing on and visualizing your plan for your time in the water with your child. Remind yourself to let go of concerns about other things. Remind yourself that you’re doing something wonderful for your child’s health, safety, and future. Remind yourself that you want this lesson to be fun for both of you. Smile and take some deep breaths. Before you get into the pool, give your child a hug, a kiss, and a smile, and tell him you love him. You’ll set the tone for the lesson, and it will be serene, gently focused, loving, and effective.

Respect Your Kids’ Feelings

Don’t deny or minimize what your kids are feeling. Acknowledge it, be direct about it, and be matter-of-fact about it. Whether your child is angry about having to be uncomfortable or try something new, afraid of the water, happy about the opportunity to play with you, or proud of the progress he’s making, he’ll feel secure when you acknowledge his feelings.

There’s no need to be dramatic about it. Remain calm. All you have to do is say, “So you’re feeling angry? I can understand that. You’re feeling afraid? I can understand that.” Acknowledging and respecting the feeling is the first step to moving past the feeling.

If your child is afraid, avoid the knee-jerk reaction to deny his fear. It’s not helpful to tell him that there’s nothing to be afraid of or that he shouldn’t worry. Acknowledge that it’s reasonable for him to be afraid. Until he has the skills to be safe, the water is dangerous. That’s a rational fear.

If an activity brings up fear for your child, back off. Inch into it a little at a time. As soon as his fear starts to rise, backtrack to an activity your child is comfortable with and spend plenty of time in that comfortable, confident place.

Respect Your Kids’ Developmental Stages

Don’t compare your child to other kids. Everybody learns at different rates and in different ways. Some things may be easier than others for your child to learn. You may be great at predicting this, but you may also be taken by surprise. Be flexible and be prepared to deal with the reality of your child’s experience instead of your expectations of how things should be.

Bonus 6th Thing: Don’t Expect Perfection

You don’t expect your kids to be perfect. Why would you be? Don’t expect yourself to be perfect at this, and don’t expect teaching your child to swim to be easy all the time. If you keep your goal in mind, though, you can maintain the perspective you need to make teaching your child to swim an experience you’ll both enjoy.