I’m afraid everything you know about how children learn to swim is wrong.

During the summer vacation, many parents will consider letting their children learn to swim. Including my husband, he has been planning to throw Guoguo into the pool for swimming lessons since she was crawling all over the floor, as soon as she turns four (the minimum age stipulated by a certain training class). The purpose is to let the child have the ability to save herself. I still don’t agree with this matter, because this concept is simply wrong! My husband is quite optimistic: \”Children learn to swim faster than adults, but the earlier they learn, the better.\” – I can only think to myself, okay, you have hit the second common mistake. So today we will sort out the misunderstandings about \”children learning to swim\”. Don\’t let your children learn to swim with the following ideas. On the contrary, it will harm your children or even endanger their lives! Misunderstanding 1: Children learning to swim are not afraid of drowning. One argument I often hear from parents is, \”If a child learns to swim, it can save his life at critical moments.\” In fact, it would be a huge mistake to think so. The \”swimming\” that children learn in swimming classes is competitive swimming, which includes the four swimming styles of breaststroke, backstroke, butterfly, and freestyle. What children learn is a form of exercise that can strengthen their bodies. This does not mean that young children will be able to save themselves if they accidentally fall into the water. On the one hand, natural waters such as rivers, lakes and seas are completely different from professional swimming pools with depth restrictions, lifeguards and life-saving equipment, and the risk factors are not comparable. On the other hand, as long as anyone is in danger in the water at any time, his life may be endangered. It has absolutely nothing to do with whether he can swim or whether he is good at swimming. You may have heard a saying called \”Those who drown are those who can swim\” – this sentence actually comes from \”Zhuangzi\”, the original text is: \”He who is good at riding will fall from his horse, he who is good at water will drown, and he who is good at water will be drowned.\” Those who drink are drunk with wine, and those who are good at fighting are killed.\” It means that people can easily relax their vigilance when they are good at doing something, and educate people not to ignore danger because of their own strengths. The most common mistake when teaching children to swim is to let down their guard. The adult may think that the child knows how to do it and not monitor it; the child may also think that he knows how to do it and boldly go into the water alone. This is very dangerous! You know, even in Olympic swimming venues, there must be a considerable number of lifeguards to prevent critical situations. The American Academy of Pediatrics, a lifeguard at the Rio Olympics swimming competition, reminds parents that children may drown even if there is only a small amount of water and they have received swimming instruction. Parents should remember that swimming training and swimming skills do not provide protection against drowning in children of any age. The American Academy of Pediatrics strongly recommends that parents should never leave their children alone outside in a place with water, such as a lake or swimming pool, or in a place with water at home, such as a bathtub or hot spring, even for a second. Myth 2: Children learn to swim quickly. Many parents believe that children have strong learning ability when they are young. Children learn language and mathematics quickly, and they should also learn swimming quickly, so the earlier they start learning, the better. This is not the case. As mentioned before, swimming is a sport, so whether a child learns it quickly or slowly depends mainly on physical condition and athletic talent. Every child is different, and earlier is not always better. In fact, Scientific AmericanIt is believed that if a child\’s motor skills are developed to the level of 5 years old and then allowed to learn swimming, the child can master the technology faster than children aged 1 to 4 years old. Because at this age, the child\’s understanding, expression, and reaction speed can be considered passing. So, how long (how many lessons) does it take for a child to learn to swim? The answer is hard to say. In addition to the different situations of each child, parents also have different judgment standards – some parents think that a child must learn how many swimming styles to be called \”swimming\”, and some parents think that even if a child can move in the water, Can swim. Therefore, we still need to adjust our mentality first and not rush for success. Learning to swim, like learning any sport, requires long-term training and persistence. It is also crucial to lay a good foundation at the beginning. If you don’t want to train your children to become competitive athletes from an early age, it’s better to have a Buddhist mentality and let your children do it at their own pace. There is no need to compete with others on whether the child learned something in three classes or eight classes. In fact, children are already exercising during the learning process in each class, right? Misunderstanding 3: It must be wrong to learn freestyle first abroad and breaststroke first in China. Nowadays, it is convenient to go abroad. Many parents have found that in swimming training classes abroad, children learn freestyle first, while in China they often start with breaststroke. The domestic method of learning must be wrong! not scientific! In fact, whether to learn breaststroke or freestyle first is caused by different conditions at home and abroad. Let’s first talk about the characteristics of these two swimming styles: Breaststroke: Easy to breathe and easy for beginners to learn, but the leg technique is complicated, so it is difficult to really swim standardly and well. It is slow, relatively laborious and not suitable for long distances. Freestyle: It is difficult to breathe, and it is slow for beginners to learn. The leg technique is similar to that of butterfly and backstroke. Once learned, it is very practical and economical. It is the fastest, labor-saving and suitable for long distances. As can be seen from the above comparison, in fact, both have their own advantages and difficulties. Breaststroke is considered the first swimming stroke because the ventilation method is easier to learn. Breaststroke uses both hands and it is easier to maintain body balance. This can increase children\’s sense of security and make them less likely to resist. On the other hand, breaststroke is the easiest swimming style to \”swim\” and allows parents to see \”results\” faster, which is in line with the aspirations of most Chinese parents. Turning the head to breathe in freestyle is more difficult, and it takes a longer time for beginners. The technical details of kicking in freestyle are not as difficult as breaststroke (if the breaststroke leg is not standard, it will be faster to learn, but it will be difficult to standardize it), but it needs to be done. Learning it well still requires hard work and practice for a period of time, which determines that learning freestyle for beginners is a relatively slow process. But once you learn it, you will have a good foundation and can master other swimming styles faster. For parents who pursue efficiency, they may wonder: Why do their children keep kicking after studying for a long time? How come you still can’t swim? So he became impatient. Therefore, we cannot simply blame the teaching methods of domestic swimming coaches for not being in line with international standards. This is affected by market demand. In the final analysis, it still depends on our own mentality. In fact, it is the same for children to learn breaststroke first. As long as they work hard and practice, they can learn it step by step. Breaststroke is easy to learn and suitable forSuitable for beginners at a younger age, children can adapt faster, are not afraid of water, and are more likely to feel a sense of accomplishment. Therefore, if you are learning to swim for physical fitness, this is not a problem that you need to worry about. What preparations can be made before children officially learn to swim? Swimming is a particularly good aerobic exercise. If you can persist in learning, it will be beneficial to children\’s body balance, cardiopulmonary function, muscle training and other aspects. But sometimes we encounter a situation where a child says he wants to learn to swim, and the parents sign him up. But when he actually goes into the water, the child becomes afraid, cries and makes noises, doesn’t listen to the coach’s instructions, and even refuses to continue swimming after two lessons. Keep learning. This is usually because the child has had too few opportunities to \”play with water\” before. The swimming coach said: \”Who learns better between a child who has been playing in water since he was a child and a child who came into contact with water after he was 6 years old? Of course it is the former.\” Therefore, we can learn from the child before he officially learns to swim. Starting from a young age, I have made some preparations for him to make his future studies smoother. 0~1 years old: Take your child to play in the water. Babies as young as this can also experience swimming. Of course, they must use a special swimming ring for babies. Just be careful not to use a collar. Parents can sing and paddle for their children at the same time, and put some ocean balls in the pool to let their babies experience the fun of floating in the water. 1~2 years old: Let your children play more during bathing. At this stage, parents will find that when their children sit in the bathtub and take a bath, they begin to know how to play with water and play with water and scoops. You can prepare some bath toys for your children so that they can fully enjoy the fun of being in the water. 3~4 years old: You can try to learn to hold your breath. At this age, children begin to understand adult instructions and can try to practice holding their breath. The first step is to let the child stand under the shower when taking a bath, close the eyes and mouth, hold the nose with your hands, and pour a small amount of water on the child\’s head several times to let the child have an initial feeling. When the child adapts, you can encourage the child not to pinch his nose when pouring water, but to exhale through his mouth. After the child can exhale, teach the child to hold his breath in the basin and blow bubbles into the mouth. The longer the better. 4~5 years old: This age group is adapted to the swimming pool, and some children have already begun to learn to swim. It depends on the child\’s physical development. There is no need for us to rush to sign up just because our peers are studying. Even if you don’t attend a training class, you can still seize the summer and take your children to the swimming pool to enjoy the coolness. Just prepare a comfortable swimming ring. Parents can try to guide their children\’s calves to do some kicking movements. 5~6 years old: At this stage of formal swimming learning, you can consider signing up for formal swimming training classes for your children. If a child is a little scared when he first starts learning, parents should never force him or her and wait until the child is ready. In addition to learning swimming skills, he should also be taught relevant safety knowledge. Let your children know the signs and meanings of deep water and shallow water, and establish good disciplines, such as no running by the pool, no playing in the water, etc. Finally, I would like to remind all parents again: Don’t think that you should relax supervision when your children are older. As long as there is water, you must keep a safe distance from your children and always pay attention to their children. In any swimming place, be prepared for emergencies and place lifebuoys and emergency supplies around them.Rescue boxes and mobile phones, etc. Teach children to always have a reverence for water. Nothing is more important than safety.