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Teach kids swimming with five fun and easy games

These five time-tested water-play activities will help teach your child to swim -- and love it!

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Originally published in Today's Parent December 2010

“I show Mommy my swimming. I can do it myself!” exclaimed four-year-old Braedon, midway through one of our swimming lessons. When he showed off his slightly uncoordinated paddle across the pool, both mom and son had ear-to-ear grins.

For many of the families I have worked with as a swim instructor, the excitement of a child’s first solo swim is on par with his first steps.

While lessons are certainly helpful, there are many things you can do to teach your kids basic swimming skills, water safety and a love for all things aquatic. Read on to learn five simple, fun activities to help your child take those first independent strokes in the water. These activities can help teach children as young as 18 months how to swim. It’s a great way to introduce swimming skills in stages. So grab your towels and let’s go!

Talk to the fishies

Practise talking to pretend fishies by getting your child to blow bubbles in the water. Then ask him to put his ear in the water to listen to the pretend response.

Skill: Breath control, which is the first step in teaching your child to swim independently. Accidentally swallowing water can be a frightening setback, so make sure you encourage him to submerge his face and blow bubbles to increase his comfort level in the water.

Tip: Make sure when you submerge your face and blow bubbles, you come up with a smile on your face. Your little one will be more apt to try this if he sees how much fun you have while doing it!

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