Children’s experiences with water can vary greatly. When choosing the right level of group, it is good to consider the child’s previous experiences with water sensations on their face, controlling their breath when water comes to their face, for example, when putting their face in the water. In the case of timid children, the underlying fear is often due to uncertainty about encountering new things. The parents’ attitude, such as giving an unpleasant or scary image of water, can also affect the child’s behavior in or around water. Below are some concepts used in swimming schools’ entry requirements.

Submersion

When submerging, the child puts their face underwater to pick up, for example, an object from the bottom of the pool while keeping their feet on the pool bottom. When the child does this several times in a playful manner, it can be concluded that submersion is natural for them.

Floating

In floating, the child dares to let go of their feet from the bottom and remains floating still. Floating can be done face down with the face in the water or on their back with the face at the water’s surface.

Diving

When diving, the swimmer moves forward underwater without touching the bottom. The position can be either parallel to the surface or angled head downward.

Basic swimming skill

Basic swimming skill is defined as a continuous swimming distance of ten meters. When assessing swimming skills for swimming school, it is good to check the swimming ability before selecting an appropriate group. If a significant amount of time has passed since the last swimming school and swimming has not been practiced since, the learned skill may have deteriorated.

How to help a child learn water skills?

We have compiled information on Our tips page ‘From Child to Water Friend’ on how to start teaching a child water skills and what needs to be taken into account.