How to Teach Your 3 Year Old Child to Swim

This is how I taught both my boys to swim. Getting underwater and supporting the child from below is fun for the parent and the child, good exercise, and it quickly builds a child's confidence in the water.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A swimming pool with a shallow end

1. Bring your child to the edge of the shallow end of the pool and get in.

2. Standing in waist-deep water, face your child, hold your arms out and gently encourage him to jump in the water.

3. Let him get all the way in the water, lift him up and praise him for jumping in.

4. Take a deep breath, get under the water with your belly facing up, an arm's length below the surface, and keep your child afloat at the surface by supporting his belly/chest with one of your hands. Your child will keep his head above the water and stick out his arms and legs. Support him so that he floats horizontally.

5. Swim underwater, backwards, by frog-kicking your legs and using your one free arm. Keep your child floating above you with your other hand supporting his belly/chest.

6. Take a breath. Rest a few seconds (holding your child). Count to three and tell your child to take a breath and hold his mouth shut.

7. Repeat steps 4, 5 and 6 above. In step 5, lower your supporting hand and swim a few feet below and away from your child. He will sink a bit, his head will go underwater, and he will see you and try to swim to you. Repeat steps 4,5 and 6 many times until your child can jump into the water and swim to you while you are underwater, looking at him. Gradually increase the distance between yourself and your child to encourage more independent swimming.

Tips & Warnings

• Always swim in the shallow end of the pool with a child who is learning to swim, and never leave your child in the pool by himself.