Another perspective on Infant “Self-Rescue” classes
We posted recently about some methods of teaching that we do not support. Today, Ulrika Faerch (one of our friends in the Learn-to-Swim community) posted the following on her Facebook page Swim Into Healthy Relationships and we think it's worth sharing:
- We don't put our children into the fire to learn them that it's dangerous.
We guard them, stand beside them. We show them with our tone of voice and facial expressions that it's hot and how to be careful and still enjoy it. And we keep guarding them. Because we know they are curious creatures of the present.
- We don't put our children on the highway to teach them how to handle traffic.
We guard them. We lift them up or hold their hand and show them how to cross the road. We keep guarding them in traffic making sure they are safe. Because we know they are curious creatures of the present.
-We don't crash the car with them unbelted in it just to teach them what to do. We put them in the car seat with the belt on when we are driving. We drive with care and might even sing some good songs together to make the journey more pleasurable.
Why would you water-board and almost drown a child to teach them how to become safe in water? What do you want them to learn? What do you think they learn? How do you think it affects the trust between you?