Opinions needed re: swimming aid for 3-year-old

Momto1bigkiddo

New member

• Apr 3, 2007

• #1

Alright, I need help again from you awesome safety-minded people here.

I am trying to decide on a swimming aid for my son to use in our pool. He will be turning 3-years-old this month.

Anyone know what is best to use???

I will of course be in the water with him with my hands on him (he is a beginner to the pool and has no swim skills right now). I have read that floaties aren't good because they don't allow their arms to move freely?? But I had floaties as a kid, and I am a great swimmer, but was also on a swim team for several summers as a child.

I am just confused. I want to really help him learn to swim. We are planning to enroll him into swimming lessons through our local park, but that is next year when he will be 4-years-old (the minimum age allowed there).

I am most leaning towards one of these two right now....They are both at my local Target and I have tried them on my son and they both fit (though the Stearns one is REALLY tight on him, can just barely zip it up. Is that ok?) Anyone have any experience?

Speedo Swim Vest
http://www.amazon.com/Speedo-Kids-Swim-Vest/dp/B0000BXEW3/ref=pd_ecc_rvi_1/104-2202608-1075936

Stearns Swim Series Pullover Life Jacket
http://www.amazon.com/Stearns®-Chil...e=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1175645110&sr=1-8

Thanks everyone. Also if you have any tips that would be great too!

 

Last edited: Apr 3, 2007

Mom2nj

Member

• Apr 3, 2007

• #2

Both my kids use just a regular 30-50 lb life vest, the one with out the head rest, padding in front and back, the one with the head rest is designed to flip them over on their backs They regular ones will at first until they are used to it, so if you are in the water with him he should be fine. I have found that they work best for my kids anyway. We have used the speedo one you posted, but when they were beginners it allowed their face to go under to easy. My 2yr old DS used a regular life vest last summer at 18 months and 25 lbs, it was a little to bouyant at first, but once we got him to keep his feet down he swims all over the place. DD can use the speedo one now because she can actually swim without a vest, she figured it out last summer at 3. I personally think they are for a more a child that is used to swimming. You may have to try a few to figure out what he needs. Good Luck.

 

spokaneCPST

CPST Instructor

• Apr 3, 2007

• #3

Those ones look great for playing in the pool. It will keep him fairly vertical in the pool, with his head above the water.

For actual swim instruction, I prefer something that puts the child in proper swim position, on their belly. A "bubble" like this would work great for that:
http://www.amazon.com/Learn-To-Swim...e=UTF8&s=sporting-goods&qid=1175646726&sr=1-5

Just have a good time with him in the pool, encouraging bubble blowing and relaxing. Do some gentle splashing to get him used to having water in his face in a fun way. Encourage him to jump into your arms - at first catch him before he even hits the water, then let him go farther as he gets more accustomed to the water. By the end of the summer, I bet he will go all the way under!
Hope that helps!
Renee

 

broken4u05

New member

• Apr 3, 2007

• #4

I am kinda scared for the summer to come. The boys will be about 20 months and last year i just had one on each hip or sat on the steps but this year they will not want to stay there. They have a baby pool but it is almost nothing at all and the water gets too hot because it is soo shallow and not covered. I might just have to not go unless the mom has off work that day

 

C

cmm7

New member

• Apr 3, 2007

• #5

I second the "bubble." My sister is a swim instructor for all ages and this is the only thing she ever recommends for actual swimming. It puts the child in the correct position. My com won't let me look at the link above, but there are some which come with removable pads to let you adjust the help it is giving him.

If you are just looking for something to keep him up, then I would go with a life jacket.

Good luck!

 

S

Synchro246

New member

• Apr 3, 2007

• #6

I third the bubbles. They are the best type of floatation aid for swimming lessons hands down. Water wings are the worst things ever, they aren't even good for playing.
When you are in the water with him keep your head down at the water's surface with him. Use singing-- especially for back floating times.
And above all have fun. Any time in the pool is teaching him how water works and how his body movements in water changes things.

 

Y

Yoshi

New member

• Apr 3, 2007

• #7

Last year, when my DD had just turned 3, we used one of those vests WITH arm floatie things (water wings?) in my mom's pool and she was super-buoyant and was able to go forward, as well as spin herself in circles, keeping her face out of the water. I could be next to her and not have to hold her up, but of course, I was always within arm's reach. This year, I am not sure if I will enroll her in the Y classes or not. She has NO desire to put her face in the water yet, and I think they do that, although I am sure it is gradually. When we visited my husband's cousin's family, they had these:
http://www.nefitco.com/swimbar.html
and their boys used them to help gain confidence (they were 5 yrs old, though) But my DD loved them! She was able to go from one end of the pool to the other with them, of course, wearing her vest and water wings, too!
Here is an interesting article I found, pointing out the pros and cons of floatation devices as swimming aids.
http://www.hhp.ufl.edu/faculty/pbird/keepingfit/ARTICLE/FLOTATION.htm

 

S

Synchro246

New member

• Apr 3, 2007

• #8

That's a good article. I always start AND finish any swim lesson without a flotation device. It helps keep it's usage in check and reminds the kid that it's a tool, not a necessity.

For children who aren't capable of swimming to the side from a few feet away *most* time really is best spent in an adults hands with no bubble. The bubble is nice for "distance" swimming to keep them from getting tired while they practice the new skills. "Distance" could be as little as 10 feet repetitively--I usually could get a pack of 5 year olds to do four 25 yard legnths in a row using a bubble. It seemed to help build confidence, stregnth, and skill. But again, we would always finish the lesson without the bubble (and with a game).

I like those water barbell things too, except it takes a lot of time to get the kid to keep their elbows strait. The moment a kid bends his or her elbows their feet sink strait to the bottom. That's pretty useless. I find that they work best for older/more advanced swimmers, but they are Ok to start introducting them at an earlier,

 

P

Pawy

New member

• Apr 3, 2007

• #9

oops sorry iam late LOL

Two great companies are
www.mypoolpal.com
and
www.floatsuitinternational.com

They have a spiderman suit...!!!

Ive allways liked the suits more than arm floaties or back floaties my kids find them alot more comfortable and they offer great sun protection..!!!
And they last years..!!

 

scatterbunny

New member

• Apr 4, 2007

• #10

What a timely post for me to find--Hayley just started swim lessons at the Y today! She LOVED IT, they used bubbles, she's the oldest/biggest kid in the class, the others are 3-4 years old. There were two instructors working with six kids, and they made it really enjoyable for the kids.

 

Dillipop

Well-known member

• Apr 4, 2007

• #11

We started doing mommy and me swim lessons with DS1 at about 8 months. at 18 months, we introduced the bubble and he was able to swim upright with it with me next to him. It looked like he was running in the water. Over time, as he got stronger, he has moved onto his belly with the bubble. Now, at almost 4, he can keep himself above the water without the bubble for a couple minutes and can swim about halfway across the shallow end of the pool. It's amazing how they progress. We take "lessons" at the boys and girls club and use these bubbles.

http://www.swimbuoy.com/about.php?PHPSESSID=a6393f64c1d00d933e392961d36e367f

In fact, we purchased the flame bubble in the picture and have been using it for 2 years now. It can be deflated as the child gets better and no longer needs as much support.

 

M

Minniemouse

Senior Community Member

• Apr 4, 2007

• #12

Bethany has been taking lessons at our YMCA since she was 3.5yo (just over 5.5yo now). They use a bubble that has four layers of foam. Each layer is removable as the child gets more confident in the pool. We were able to purchase one from our Y for use in other pools.

Bethany progressed through the Y's classes and as of last year at this time stopped using the bubble altogether. For at least the last 6+months she has been able to swim the length of the pool (50yds) both on her belly (sort of freestyle w/o the rhythmic breathing...she's working on that) and doing the backstroke. She's a regular fish.

We purchased one of those floaty swim suits for her at one point and she HATED it. The floats would float up under her chin and she was very uncomfortable. Beth's old bubble will now pass down to Ben. At 16mo he is just about ready to start using it. We did mommy and me swimming for a while and he liked it but I was too stressed getting all of us out of the house and swimming after work one day a week, so I need to reschedule him for a different day.

Oh, our Y also has those barbell floats. The kids use them all the time, they are great.

 

T

trailrunnermom

New member

• Apr 4, 2007

• #13

Momto1bigkiddo said:

Also if you have any tips that would be great too!

Click to expand...

Our swimming instructor believes that one important thing is to get kids used to going under the water, so that they will automatically hold their breath, rather than gasping out the last of their air. This way, if they fall in, they will hold their breath and the parent will have at least a few extra precious seconds to respond.

A fun way to teach this is to do "Humpty-Dumpty" with your child sitting on the edge of the pool and you standing in the water, and when "Humpty-Dumpty had a great fall" you hold your child's arms (at the elbows is a good spot) and let them slip into the pool and under (you don't let go). Then lots of praise. Try not to let them cling to your neck. I started this with my youngest when he was about 19 months, but there were much younger babies in our "mommy & me" class. HTH!

 

TheRealMacGyver

New member

• Apr 4, 2007

• #14

The "Y" or other swim lessons are great. We took them at the "Y" and it was a lot of fun.

As for tips that our instructor gave:

1. Never let them go into the water until you tell them. She had us either say 1, 2, 3, jump or ready, set, jump. Main idea is that they wait for your cue before going in.

2. Take a favorite toy (one that floats and won't get destroyed by water!) and throw it while they are sitting on the edge, then cue them to jump, (you are ALWAYS holding them by the way) then tell them what to do while you go to retrieve the toy. We said kick, kick, kick, splash, splash splash. just as some encouragement.

3. She also had me take my son underwater at 11 months, which was a little frightening. You blow as hard as you can into their face, and immediately dunk them very briefly. You have to kind of do it all in one motion without hesitation. He was fine. This just gets them used to going under.

4. Get them to blow bubbles (show them), because this gets them used to blowing air out, which keeps water out.

And of course, always make it fun. Taking swim lessons helps because there are a bunch of kids and they all watch each other and try to mimic them.

Best of luck with your swimmer

 

Momto1bigkiddo

New member

• Apr 4, 2007

• #15

You guys are fantastic. Thank you so much everyone. All of this advice is awesome and I really appreciate it!! :thumbsup: