In the past month, I've had two different cases of parents deciding to move their children up to the next level after the previous teacher had not passed them. They felt that there was no progress being made at the current level, and thought that the solution was just to sign them up for the next highest level. In both cases, the student was a Level 2 and ended up in my level 3 class.
In the first case, I was able to work with the student get her skill level to improve up to a level 3. The other student, however, was not progressing in level 2 because of her over-dramatic fear of drowning. This did not improve with a move to the "big pool". She became even more worried, and refused to try even those skills she had already mastered because she couldn't touch the bottom. In this case, her mother actually set back her progress by pushing too hard, too fast. I recommended private lessons to work through her fear of deep water and hopefully make some progress that she wasn't getting in regular lessons.
This article was written for all the parents who are tempted to push ahead even if their children are not ready for the next level of swimming lessons.
Swimming Lessons: Passing to the Next Level
It explains why it's not a good idea, and gives tips for what parents can do to ensure their children are progressing in the correct swimming lesson level.
In the first case, I was able to work with the student get her skill level to improve up to a level 3. The other student, however, was not progressing in level 2 because of her over-dramatic fear of drowning. This did not improve with a move to the "big pool". She became even more worried, and refused to try even those skills she had already mastered because she couldn't touch the bottom. In this case, her mother actually set back her progress by pushing too hard, too fast. I recommended private lessons to work through her fear of deep water and hopefully make some progress that she wasn't getting in regular lessons.
This article was written for all the parents who are tempted to push ahead even if their children are not ready for the next level of swimming lessons.
Swimming Lessons: Passing to the Next Level
It explains why it's not a good idea, and gives tips for what parents can do to ensure their children are progressing in the correct swimming lesson level.
