Swim Lessons

We've started swimming lessons again!  I was going to sign up all four of the older kids but the classes were six and up.  Leon's class would have been a completely different time of the day and I can't really handle that right now so just the older three got to do lessons.  Here we are leaving the hotel.  The kids usually run ahead of me and I've seen Scarlett just like this a few times in a row now.  So many things about this make me nervous.

We've had talks about what the fire alarm is and how no one should be pulling it.  But still when she is staring intently at it every day I can't help but think that one day her curiosity will overpower her want to obey.

Swim lessons are going well.

The first week they did great but the second week they seemed to get the idea that they were just there to play and have fun.  Tucker seemed to goof off a bit too much so we had a talk about why we are there and he really stepped it up.  I am fine for having fun, but I want them to learn to swim.  If w were just there to play around I would not have signed them up for the lessons and just let them play around in the water.  They have open swim almost all the time and there is no charge for us to use the pool.  But the cost of swimming lessons adds up.

The girls had a bit of a harder time than Tucker.  Their first week also seemed to go well, but after that I noticed that they would just not do the things their teacher asked of them.  If they thought it was scary they would just stoically stare at the teacher and completely ignore what he was saying.  They wouldn't even say, "no, it's too scary."  Just sit their like statues.

We also had a talk about why we were there and that if they don't shape up they will not be signed up for the next session.  I found out that they were actually very scared of drowning and they thought if they tried something and it didn't work out they would drown right then and their.  We talked about how no one is going to drown during swim lessons.  And not drowning is exactly why they need to learn to swim.

I also told them they absolutely have to try everything their teacher asks.  If they can't do it that is ok, but they need to try.

After that they both started doing much better.  They even like it a lot more now too because they are less scared and they get to do fun things like jump in. 

Neither of them seemed to retain anything they learned from their completely year of swim lessons they did a couple years ago.  That is one reason why I don't mind keeping Leon out until he is older.

So I'd say that things are going pretty well and we will sign up for the next session.  The kids all even get themselves showered and dressed afterwards.  Leon and I wait in the hall and play rock paper scissors while they get dressed.  I used to just bring them home to get dressed, but it's hard with only one bathroom and no separate rooms for people to change in.