Nannies learning to swim

[Anonymous]

I read the other post about nannies who don't swim. I just wanted to encourage adults to learn to swim. I got my Water Safety Instructor certificate in college and volunteered to teach swimming at the local YWCA every year to keep my license current. One time, when I was about 22, they gave me a class of adults (all of them were women, but the YWCA taught males and females). Anyway I was scared to death to teach adults. But I had 6 women, all in different stages of their lives and all had their own reasons for wanting to learn to swim.

As a teacher, I was so impressed with each woman for wanting to learn to swim later in life. One person was around 30 and was getting married and her fiance wanted to go snorkeling. Another woman was about 65 and said she never learned to swim but always wanted to know how to. As a teacher of older students, I had to make some adjustments to style, but each one worked so hard and to this day I was so grateful to be able to teach a beginners class of adults. (It turns out they were not scary at all.)

So if you want to learn to swim, find an adult class to take. They have classes just for adults, but you have to look around. It is nice to take a group class, because then you feel that you are in the same situation as other students. Swimming is fun and it is the only way to safely do other water activities you may be missing out on.

[Anonymous]

Meh, I agree with everything here but if someone really does not want to swim then that is cool too. I enjoy reading the classics but not everyone does. When people tellme they don't feel like they are missing out on anything I accept that. To each his own.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Meh, I agree with everything here but if someone really does not want to swim then that is cool too. I enjoy reading the classics but not everyone does. When people tellme they don't feel like they are missing out on anything I accept that. To each his own.

Knowing how to swim is a safety skill. There is more at stake than personal taste. I absolutely believe every person needs to learn how to swim a little bit, even if someone never chooses to swim for fun.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Meh, I agree with everything here but if someone really does not want to swim then that is cool too. I enjoy reading the classics but not everyone does. When people tellme they don't feel like they are missing out on anything I accept that. To each his own.

I couldn't disagree more. This is a NANNY forum - for nannies and I am assuming the OP was speaking to nannies. Yes, it is imperative that a nanny know how to swim. We should all have had CPR and First Aid classes and swimming is another way we can add to the safety of our charges. Pool Drowning is one of the top 3 causes of accidental death in this country (the #1 cause in the south west and Florida) for children under the age of 5. And it is 100% preventable. Death by Pool Drowning is 100% preventable. That alone should be enough reason for all nannies to know how to swim.

[Anonymous]

Some nannies work with infants - presumably they aren't doing pool outings...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Meh, I agree with everything here but if someone really does not want to swim then that is cool too. I enjoy reading the classics but not everyone does. When people tellme they don't feel like they are missing out on anything I accept that. To each his own.

I couldn't disagree more. This is a NANNY forum - for nannies and I am assuming the OP was speaking to nannies. Yes, it is imperative that a nanny know how to swim. We should all have had CPR and First Aid classes and swimming is another way we can add to the safety of our charges. Pool Drowning is one of the top 3 causes of accidental death in this country (the #1 cause in the south west and Florida) for children under the age of 5. And it is 100% preventable. Death by Pool Drowning is 100% preventable. That alone should be enough reason for all nannies to know how to swim.

So morse code and the six Boy Scouts knots. Dong you have training in those?

[Anonymous]

I have never had a family ask me to do pool outings. Based on the other thread about fears of the water it seems like few nannies are asked even though most nannies do know how to swim. Whatever the demand is for swimming nannies the market for it seems to have been met and then some. Is there an unmet demand for swimming nannies? Doesn't seem like a notable issue outside of DCUM nanny forums.