FOR PARENTS WHO spent their childhood summers trembling at the poolside in fear of the dreaded deep end, swimming is a skill they are keen to teach their own little ones early.
Classes are available for infants as young as three months. But does your youngster have to be a water baby in order to be a confident swimmer by school age? Swimming instructors say every child should learn to swim, not just for their own safety but for fun and exercise. And while it gets harder to teach them as they get older, there's no need to rush newborns to the pool.
Pierre Steynberg is the managing director of Multi-Sport, which runs swimming lessons for children at the Hong Kong Football Club, Hong Kong Cricket Club, the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club, the Aberdeen Boat Club and the French International School. He says infants can start mother-and-baby classes at three months, when they have had their inoculations, but they don't begin learning to swim properly until closer to three years of age, when their head is more in proportion with their body and their neck muscles are stronger.
'The early introduction is to give them a positive attitude towards the water. With the babies, we don't actually teach them to swim, it's more water happiness,' he says.
'They can learn to float and we encourage as much movement as possible. They can use their limbs freely in the water, and when most of these little babies are static in a cot for most of the day it's exhilarating for them to be in an environment where they can kick and splash.
'The babies eat better and they sleep better afterwards so mothers love it, and it's very social for mothers as well.
