Luke, 5, "Two Life Jacket Luke"
My dear, sweet 25th project participant came to Dive California for his lesson. Luke is five years old and wears TWO, yes TWO, lifejackets when he swims.
Matthew, 12, "It worries me that kids will make fun of me"
I had heard that Matthew loved to swim, but wore a life jacket when he was in water over his head. This allowed him to play with his friends and have a great time in the water, but as he got older, he realized that the life jacket acted as a ‘crutch’ and he was more than ready to learn how to swim without it.
Emma, 3, "Cutting the apron strings"
Emma was doing well, but I noticed she would cling to mom and wasn't progressing as quickly as I knew she could. This is really common- a child fussing to mom when they don't want to do something. Emma's mom is awesome and was open to whatever was best for Emma.
Mellissa, 3, "I don't wanna put my face in the water"
Every time I came even remotely close to getting her face wet, Mellissa would try to distact me by talking and turning my attention away from the water. I accepted her challenge and was able to get her face wet and even get her underwater.
Evangeline, 5, "No! That's enough!"
It all comes down to the right balance between fun teacher and authoritative teacher, which is necessary, but not always easy.