BrillKids Forum

Does anyone have any experience with "teaching your baby to swim" method of Glenn Doman. Have you read his book? Have you tried it? Thank you.

There are some classes that can teach babies to be safe in water.  My sister is doing it with her 9 month old.  She put video on youtube of it.  It was amazing to see her little one go under and come up on her back.  I'm not exactly sure of what all they teach, but I do know she said it is basically to teach her to turn on to her back and float if she falls in the water.  After seeing it I can now understand how my sister can have peace of mind with the pool in the back yard.  Her little one now knows how to at least turn over and float if she falls in.  It's not fool proof, but at least my sister has the knowledge that her little one is at least equipped with the training of what to do if she falls in.

I think I saw a video of that demonstration before.

Can you post a link to your sister's?

Ayden was 9 months old when he was taught how to roll on his back and float to save himself in the water, using ISR (Infant Swimming Resource) self-rescue technique.  Back in May, ISR was featured on the Today show.   If you visit www.infantswim.com you can view the video's and locate an instructor near to you.  We had a wonderful experience with ISR and will continue the program.  To some I know this program can be a senstative discussion.  Let me know if have any questions about it and we could start a new thread discussion  :D

the video is 10 minutes long and is tedious to watch for the first 8 so I suggest just forwarding to the end and watching the last minute or so, that's where the instructor really get's her to do what she's trained to do.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnsDd_gUdwE (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BnsDd_gUdwE)

Akgard, thanks for that excellent video! INCREDIBLE!! That's really wonderful - wish I had come across this earlier!

Littlemapuz, thanks for the link to ISR!!

everyone, in addition to watching Akgard's video, do check out the Today Show video in the ISR site:
http://www.infantswim.com/news-and-events/todayshow.html

Excuse me now while I go look for my swimming gear...
(Looking at Felicity with evil grin...  :biggrin: )

Great video on infantswim.com

In U.S. statistics, there are more accidents with young children in homes with a pool than homes that carry firearms.
I read that in a book called "Freak-onomics"

I think this is an extremely crucial skill especially if you own a pool in your home.
And like the video stresses, PLEASE DON"T TRY THIS AT HOME!

Thanks for sharing!

Thanks for sharing that video!  :biggrin:  I was personally amazed at how young these children are, but I'm actually happy that they are being taught a vital survival skill.

To share a bit of experience, my dad (who used to be a competitive swimmer) also taught us how to float and swim at a very young age.  I remember that by age 4 I knew how to doggy paddle, and that my dad always said that swimming is one of the most important skills we should learn. 

My parents told me that as a baby, they made me get used to the sensation of being in water, and I had known how to float on my back before I was two.  It was just one of those natural things that my parents taught us as little children, and to date, I am still amazed to find some of my friends afraid of being in the water because they never learned how to swim.  I think that as a skill, learning how to swim (or at least stay afloat) is very important - and I must say that I have grown up never being afraid of the water.

I think that when I start having children, I may do the same; only this time it could be far more convenient because there are actual schools such as Infant Swim that can help.   :wub:

On You Tube there are many many swimming videos with swimming lessons for infant and kids and also videos of infant self-rescue.

There is a great site on you tubu concerning HOW TOs - the official YouTube channel of Expert Village, the world's largest how-to video site. All Expert Village videos are part of longer series, so if you find a video you like, visit www.expertvillage.com to view more in that series.
Embedding on You Tube on their site is disabled by request - so I can not really put an example here, but search for "You Tube swimming lesson" and you will find the videos.
A least some exaples of titles of the videos you can find:

• How to Teach Kids to Swim : Beginner Swimming Lessons for Children : Going Underwater with an Infant : Kids' Swimming Lesson
  How to Teach Kids to Swim : Beginner Swimming Lessons for Children : Teaching a Child the Back Float : Kids' Swimming Lesson
  How to Teach Kids to Swim : Beginner Swimming Lessons for Children : Teaching a Child the Backstroke : Kids' Swimming Lesson
  How to Teach Kids to Swim : Beginner Swimming Lessons for Children : Returning Infants to the Wall : Kids' Swimming Lesson
  How to Teach Kids to Swim : Beginner Swimming Lessons for Children : How to Hold an Infant in the Water : Kids' Swimming Lesson

and many many more!  I find it very usefull. :yes:

Infant swimming (http://youtube.com/user/InfantSwimming) offers 9 vidoes - 4 of them as an examples:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=aseQsDBJS6c
http://youtube.com/watch?v=nI_XzNfxjlY
http://youtube.com/watch?v=-cn-dSZEjjQ
http://youtube.com/watch?v=uQhI7_rV4Ro
This is their website www.infantswim.com

Here are some examples of different sources but again there are much more on You Tube. If you are really interested search on You Tube for swimming.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=2vlv450qcNE
http://youtube.com/watch?v=xohxTLV9wCQ

I started to attend swimming classes with my baby-girl when she was about 6 months old. We were supposed to teach her to hold the breath under water by using one certain word (depends on parents which they choose) and always before splashing some water on her face say the word. Later (alwas after saying the word) we were supposed to pour a cup of water on her and even later put her under water. We followed it (in the bath tub every day and once a week in a pool) and it worked. At about 12 months (to be honest I do not remember exactly) she was pretty OK swimming under water.

There are great resources on the You Tube concerning swimming. I posted some examples of You Tube videos here:
http://forum.brillkids.com/general-discussion-b5/teaching-your-baby-how-to-swim/msg2719/#msg2719

[EDIT - both threads merged! - KL]

Thanks for all those great videos, Martina! You really are a YouTube pro!  :tongue2:

I gotta show Felicity these videos - she loves getting into the pool but still gets upset when she gets water on her face!

Well!  See what I miss when I go to work for a weeek!  :ohmy:   GEESH!  Thanks AKGard (AKA my sister!!!) for posting Matteson's swim lessons!  She will "graduate" this tuesday and I can not say enough great things about our instructor and the program!  I would never leave Matteson alone by water, but I now have the confidence that should I turn my back for a second, she will be ok.  We are looking forward to next summer when she will do "phase 2" of this program and then I will say that she knows how to swim; at 18 months!!  If anyone would like additional information or personal testimony please don't hesitate to contact me!   :D

How much is it?

We got a 50% discount because a master swim instructor from Ohio drove to Michgan to train 2 other people.  You do have to pay a one time national registration fee of $105 per child.  Then a weekly lesson fee of $90 but I got it for $45 and our session went for 5 weeks.

I think the cost sorta depends on the instructor but the national fee is the same.  We are paying $105 a week and really would have been done in three weeks, but Matteson got sick and missed a few days so it is taking us the full four weeks. :)  Also, I know that my instructor also offers refresher courses for free so if I ever feel that maybe she's forgotten a skill we can go back to her and "re-learn" it at no charge or even have a refresher course next summer. 

Glad you joined this discussion! It's amazing what Matteson can do now!!  :yes:

What was it like in the beginning though? Was there lots of crying, and if so, was that hard to bear?

I had done some research on it and the company does a great job at educating parents on how the program works and what you can expect from the lessons and they do warn you that there WILL be crying.   :(  So I really went into the first lesson knowing she was going to cry and not like it.  I kept telling myself that the people who developed this 40 some years ago have probably perfected this by now and if it wasn't a proven method, people wouldn't keep doing it, so just stick it out; it's for Matteson's own good!  It really helped and by the middle of the first week I could tell that her crying wasn't really panic but more of "complaining".  Truthfully, I'm glad that she cries when she is floating because if she ever did fall in while I wasn't right there, I would hear her; if she wasn't crying I'd never know anything was wrong! 

I do have to admit that it is definatley a commitment.  It is 5 days a week and you have to monitor your childs eating, sleeping and bowel movements every day and there are certain foods that are no-no's for the duration of the course (like apples; apparently they cause bloating and no dariy 2 hrs before lessons, ect.) but like I said before, I put my trust in the fact that they have been doing this for 40 yrs and have a proven track record, there must be a pretty darn good reason to do all these things.   :yes:

I am sooooo glad that we did this probably would have done it at double the cost.  Just last year our family lost a little one to drowning and I swore then that my little one would know how to swim as early as possible!

Ayden cried/complained during every session too.  There were a couple days that were hard for me as well.  But when you actually see them roll over and floating on their back, it's just amazing and worth the tears.  I've been working with Ayden myself on getting him to enjoy the water and float him on his back.  We will do the re-fresher classes next year. 

 Well this is a difficult post for me but I really felt I had to put it up. :(

 Firstly let me say that I think teaching babies to swim is very important, and I took Ashley to classes when he was 6 months.
 
 However.... My Nan's neighbour's 2 year old daughter drowned last year in a very small amount of water in a paddling pool on their back deck. The mother is a swimming instructor, they live on the beach in Australia, the child was very comfortable in the water. I guess the point that I am making is that NOTHING beats constant supervision when it comes to safety around water.
 I believe that any skill that gives a child a better chance if they fall in the water is TOTALLY worth it. So I do think the swimming classes are a positive thing. BUT... if they give the caregivers a false sense of security, this could be a negative thing. A child can drown in literally a few inches of water.
 Sorry if I to bring the conversation down but this was a subject close to my heart so.... please dont take offense.   :confused: 

There was a local child who drowned like 8 hours after swimming. They said he must have swallowed a lot of water while swimming. He was fine all day, just complained of a headache. Then later that night he died. So yes, constant supervision is important, even for older children.

I totally agree that constant supervison is necessary, and I also caution about a false sense of security.  But I do feel better that Matteson is equipped with skills that could save her life should something horrible happen. :)

Sorry to hear that, Karli. I can imagine how you must feel... :(

Totally agreed about constant supervision!

Yes constant supervision is a MUST for children this young.

I started my girl on swimming classes this Summer at 2 different places and I must say that the instructor and their methods is very important. With one class, she did not really learn a thing and actually got scared of water after 3 classes! Then I went to another one, which was a swimming camp for 5 days in a row. At the first class, she was crying nonstop and my husband kept shaking his head (he was in the water with her) as he couldn't do anything to stop her. The second day, I took her in and again she cried, but was slightly better but I had to constantly sing to her to make her happy (she loves music). By the third class, she was much better and only cried to complain but at least she did most of the exercises. The method they used was excellent and I managed to get her to go underwater without drinking any in the 3rd class.

Unfortunately, my daughter fell sick the 4th and 5th day, so we missed those, but I am sure that if we went, she would have been much better! I really think that they can swim very young because in the same class, there were babies as young as 6 months and he was doing very well (his dad told me, that was his 5th week, so he has had 20+ classes already).

I'm curious about the child who drowned hours later.  I hope you don't mind sharing a little more info. about how that could happen.I am not trying to be skeptical at all - just trying to understand how it could happen in order to prevent it.  That's a very scary scenario.

thanks

Here is the story from our local news station. Thanks for asking; I think every parent should read it! http://www.live5news.com/Global/story.asp?s=8415097

Thanks! That article helped me to understand it a little better.   It's still a scary thought, but at least they gave a few warning signs to watch for.

I appreciate the info. :)

Thanks for the link. It is really useful to know that this can happen. Really scary!

In australia they have pool fencing regulations but still we have tragic drownings, like in dams (they cant be fenced), in water collection towers (3 year-old twins died last year climbing up one at their grandparents), in jogger prams which go downhill into rivers the moment a mum loses concentration answering a monile phone (this has hsppened a couple of times last year). I always check if people have little fish ponds... they can be lethal.  Even a bucket of water for the dog can drown a baby.

Speaking of jogger prams, our maternal health nurse says DONT USE THEM for jogging, they cause shaken baby syndrome and brain damage!

actually a friend of mine had a bad experience with her kids at a lesson at the pool...they were 3 or 4 years old and the instructor didnt seem to notice they were drowning...mum had to jump in and rescue them! and at a local pool with life guards someone yelled out "oh my god they're drowning, and sure enough right near me there were 2 kids under water at the side of the pool... their mums at the very opposite side. so even lifeguards dont make a pool safe, and when watch0ing your own kids you can have blind spots where you can have 2 children underwater drowning right near you and you cant see, and over all the noise, cant hear. Just near the edge is not a very visible spot.

In australia you can buy or borrow from the library videos "teach your baby to swim" by Laurie lawrence, who coaches the olympic swim team.

Wow I've never heard of 'dry-drowning' before...weird, and a bit scary. Ashley always has a nap after swimming. In fact he's upstairs now... :(

Can videos do it then? I was under the impression that a professional trainer has to be there in person ?

Yes the dry drowning is very strange, especially that kids tend to sleep after swimming, like Karli's Ashley, because they are drained from all their energy ;)

I also have a video called Waterbabies by Little Dippers UK. It's a 21 week by week instruction and demonstration of how you can teach your baby to swim. Their main aim is to teach babies to swim to the edge or to turn and float in case they do fall into the water.

They also say that most drowning occurs when the baby panics and takes in water, but if they manage to stay calm, it actually reduces the chances of drowning.

In the video, they have around 10-15 babies doing the demo and the youngest is only 5 weeks old. It's really amazing to watch them all being taught how to swim and also when they actually swim.

However, at the end of the day, it is the practical experience which matters so I definitely still think a real coach will be better than any videos or books.  :yes:

Thanks for the info! :)

I was wondering, did you try the videos with your baby then? I mean, did you watch them and try doing them yourself? how well is that working out?

Did try the first few weeks as some exercises I can do in the bath tub at home and it was fine, but then I enrolled her into an actual swim class.

i just borrowed from the library usboorne Parent's Guides...Teach your baby to swim.  Lots of pictures... handy for those who have their own pools.

Hi everybody

We had to give the brand-new Reading section of BrillBaby priority over the Swimming section (do check out the new Reading section (http://brillbaby.com/teach-baby/reading.php) if you haven't already!).

But... I had a chat with a baby-swim instructor and pediatrician to put together a Swimming FAQ (http://brillbaby.com/teach-baby/infant-swimming.php) that I hope some of you will find useful.

Personally, I've found the submersion technique invaluable. I don't think I would've had the guts to put Naimah under without it!

I also recommend counting to three right before you blow in your baby's face. Nim got the hang of it immediately and now, when I start counting, I can see her preparing to go under. She used to look so completely shocked (and a little scared) when she came up - but not anymore. :)

Maddy

Hi,

I started teaching my babyboy swimming in the pool last week.  He is now five months old and gets realy excited when he sees the water :)  I still cant let him on his own but he is already doing the doggy style swiming technique :D
Here is our favorite video - we love the song as well :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a1wLVmgChOc&feature=related

Well done!!

Felicity has only just been able to go underwater without TOO much complaint! Wish we knew these techniques much earlier!

:)

I couldn't have imagined that babies could swim like they do in the videos. I'm really impressed! Thanks to all of you for those fantastic videos. I had never thought about teaching my baby how to swim before but after having seen those videos I am really thinking about taking my baby to some swimming lessons.
It's a shame summer is coming to an end because I suppose this is the best season to start swimming learning ( because of the good weather)

My DS started the infant swim program when he was 6 months old.  It was the first lessons taught in Michigan.  Our classes were in February and held indoors at the local hotel.  I suggest visiting www.infantswim.com and you can type in your zip code and see what's available in your area.

Hi there, I have just showed my son these swimming clips.  He was so enthrolled as was I!  Thanks for sharing these.  We haven't started any sort of swimming lessons.  My son loves water though - will have to make a plan!

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