How Quickly Can a Kid Learn to Swim?

As a parent, one of the most important things you can do for your child is teach them basic water safety skills. It only takes a few seconds of unsupervised water activity to lead to dangerous and devastating consequences. That’s why learning to swim in Los Angeles, CA, is so important and so beneficial for you and your kids. With the right swimming school, your child will become incredibly confident and comfortable in the water before you know it. Here are some factors you should keep in mind when thinking about how long it may take for successful swim learning.

What Defines Swimming?

Swimming can mean different things to different people. This is a process, just like learning to walk, talk or read. You may have certain benchmarks to mark your child’s progress, or you may have a final goal in mind. Whatever your take on swimming may be, you’ll need to identify what you want your child to get out of swimming lessons, and what level you want their skills to be at when they are done.

Depending on who you ask, you may get different responses to the question, as swimming may mean something different for everyone. Here are the possible skills that can give you a better idea of what growing children should be able to accomplish in the water.

There is a set of benchmarks that define what children are capable of performing in the water. For example, by three months a baby is able to have water gently poured on their head without getting upset, while six-month old babies can complete a quick underwater pass. By 12 months, babies can do brief underwater swims, and once they are a year and a half older, they can move through the water for 3-5 seconds with their legs. Two-year-old toddlers can get into the side of a pool from a seated position, while 30-month toddlers learning to swim in classes can paddle with their face in the water for 7-10 feet. The list goes on and on, as three-and four-year-olds are ready to learn breathing techniques for swimming longer distances with their faces in the water. By six years old, a child is at the age to swim confidently on their own. Your child may not follow these exact guidelines, and that’s fine! It’s just a basis for you to get a better idea of what your child may be capable of doing with the support and guidance of a teacher.

Kid in Pool

How Old Is Your Child?

Keeping those benchmarks in mind, how quickly your child will learn swim is also directly related to your child’s age. Your child’s motor skills and cognitive development will have an impact on their swimming success. After all, their ability to learn a specific physical skill can be limited by their motor skills. While it’s true that these skills improve naturally as children get older, kids learning to swim at a younger age may be more comfortable and natural in the water. Most experts say it’s better to teach kids how to swim when they’re young, so at least they have these skills in case of emergency.

When teaching your child to swim, ask yourself these questions:

What experiences do they have with the water?
Does your child display natural swimming ability?
How is your child’s focus and motivation?
What is the expertise of your child’s swimming instructor?

If your child has been around water their whole life and is very familiar with it, this may help you speed the process of swimming lessons up a bit. Plus, if your child seems like a natural-born swimmer with confidence and composure in the water, then they may be able to reach their swimming goals faster. So long as you’re working with a motivated swim teacher who truly cares about your kids, and you trust that your kids are focused enough to move forward with swimming lessons, you’ll be in good hands. At the end of the day, every child can move at their own pace throughout swim education, and you can choose a dedicated swim lesson provider that will cater to your child’s needs and help them reach their full potential in the water.

If you’re ready to take the next steps in teaching your child to swim, get in touch with the experts in water education at Swim Right Academy!