We’re not talking soap bubbles. Nope, we’re talking a swimming skill. You’ve practiced the fundamentals of blowing bubbles on land. Now it’s time to use what they’ve learned and expand on it in a swimming lesson.

Stage 2 of Teaching Your Kids to Blow Bubbles

You can teach the following swimming skills in the bathtub first or move straight to the swimming pool, depending on your kids’ comfort levels, your preference, and the availability of a pool (or tub).

Have your kids try to take in and spit out water.

Have your kids practice holding their breath out of the water. Teach this skill by demonstrating it. Demonstrate by taking an exaggerated breath in, puffing up your cheeks, and holding your nose. Have your kids do the same. Have them try it again without holding their noses. At first, your child can hold his finger right under his nose to make sure no air is being taken in or leaking out through his nose.

When he can hold his breath out of the water for several seconds, have him practice holding his breath and putting his whole face in the water for just a moment. You can practice this in a bowl of water first.

When he’s comfortable with putting his face in the water, have your child hold his breath and put his face in the water for several seconds. You can have him count to three in his head, or you can tap on his back once a second, telling him to lift his head whenever he needs to but to try to hold his breath until you tap his back three times. If you spot a burst of bubbles coming out of the water, it means he’s lost the hang of it and you should lift his head out of the water for the moment.

Do’s

Hold your child’s body close to yours so that he feels supported when you’re teaching this swimming skill.

Don’ts

Don’t force his head, and don’t rest your hand on the back of his head while his face is under the water. Doing either of those things will make your child feel a loss of control. That will make it hard for you to convince him to try again.

You won’t see a 200-meter bubble-blowing event in the next Olympics. Nonetheless, learning to blow bubbles is an important swimming skill. It’s a stepping stone to learning breath control, which your child will use whenever he’s swimming for the rest of his life. What’s so important about blowing bubbles, and how can you teach your kids to do it?

Teaching Your Kids to Blow Bubbles: A Swimming Lesson?

Blowing bubbles teaches your child to be comfortable putting and keeping his face in the water. It teaches him to take deep breaths in and to control letting his breath out. It encourages him to play with holding his breath. All of these things are integral elements of breathing while swimming.

A Swimming Lesson for Dry Land

You can practice blowing bubbles without getting into the water. Blow on your child’s hand. Have him blow on his own hand. This practice will help him to get the feel of blowing.  So will blowing bubbles with soapy water and a bubble wand. You can also practice with balloons. Always supervise young children with balloons, because balloons are a choking hazard.

You can practice blowing bubbles through a straw into water in a glass. Then, you can practice blowing bubbles directly in the water, in the tub or in a large bowl or pot of water. Remember to supervise your child even when you’re using these small amounts of water.

If your child is nervous about putting his face in the water, dip your hand into the water and stroke his face with your wet hand. Then encourage him to put just his lips into a saucer of water. Move from there to slightly more water in a bowl. From there, you can encourage him to put his lips into the water in a bathtub.

Do Hold Your Breath

The intake of breath that you need to start blowing bubbles is a step toward holding your breath. Blowing into a young child’s face causes him to hold his breath for a moment. This can also help you teach your child the feeling of holding his breath.