Help a Swimmer Out

Samantha has always been a water baby. She’s loved the water from the moment we first had her in the bath.

She took swimming lessons from the Red Cross last summer.

She took swimming lessons from the Red Cross this summer. Six weeks of swim lessons this summer. Ahem, six long weeks of swim lessons this summer.

We did miss a lesson or two here or there (hello, kid throwing up in the pool) but overall we did pretty well. She, however, did not do so well.

Throughout the entire six weeks, she consistently refused to go under water. At her age and swim level, she needs to go under water. And, still–she won’t go under water.

We tried everything; encouraging, cajoling, humoring, incentivizing, bribing, ignoring, threatening, dunking.

No go.

And now we are getting ready for our one big trip this year to our most-favorite-place-in-the-world, Saranac Lake. Yes, LAKE. As in, we’re going to Camp Algonquin, my folks’ camp, on one of the-most-beautiful-lakes-in-the-world, and we will be spending most of our days in/on/by the lake.

She’s already saying “but I don’t wanna go unner waderrrrrr…”.

So we’re not making a big deal out of it. But, we strongly feel that it is our parental duty to help teach her to swim. And we just can’t progress if she won’t go under water.

So, does anyone have any suggestions for us to help our reluctant swimmer?

How did you get your kid(s) to go under water?