A fear or water

[smtroop168]

Good for you!

Curious: Did your leader tell you that you had to do the requirement in a lake?

[cballman]

Sometimes its is cheaper to go to the lake than a pool. Just a thought.

[smtroop168]

Cheaper probably but required no.

[fritz1255]

My son failed the swimming test two years in a row at summer camp. I told him that if he failed a third time, he was going to have to take swimming lessons. He desperately did not want to do this, since he would almost certainly be in a class with preschoolers. The third summer, I was scheduled to be there in the latter half of the week. When I got there, he nonchalantly told me that he had passed, like it was no big deal. Needless to say, it was a big deal for both us!

At that point, he was way backed way up on rank advancement (can't get to First Class without passing the swim test or equivalent) and had nearly all the merit badges he needed for Life. He progressed from Second Class to Life within about 14 months. He is still not an expert swimmer, and has gotten his Hiking and Emergency Preparedness badges instead of Swimming and Lifesaving.

In his case, not passing the swimming was mostly about achieving physical maturity. While is ability was not much better, his stamina and athleticism was, and he was able to pass. Moral of the story - hang in there and perservere!

[cballman]

That is a story that I like to hear about. Now this is where I also have a problem. As a ASM and BSALifeguard I personally take the swimming to heart. If I have a child in my Troop that is having problems I will work with this child until he can pass his swim test unless they or their parents have given up and just wont even try. I firmly believe that this is my calling because I can swim and I have patience with most kids. If your son acts like if it nothing then so be it. We can still be very proud and not show it. Small story a child a couple years ago at camp couldnt pass his swim test. I worked with the child until Wed. of that week. He passed and I told him how proud of him I was and then we went and met for a Cherry Slushie. I just wish I knew who the kid was but then again I got a slushie and didnt get in trouble for it. Still I like the stories where the kids come out on top.

[alex gregory]

I like the title of this post because I think it is great to have a healthy respect for water. It's Memorial Day weekend and it's going to be gorgeous, sunny and hot. On Tuesday I'll be able to read the paper and see how many 15 to 25 year old man boys drowned this weekend because they got stupid and probably drunk around wild water.

Do not let "fear" of water prevent you from teaching a boy the basic skills he needs to know to survive in the water. So many drowning tragedies occur every summer because weak swimmers get into water that they could better manage if they had learned and developed better swimming skills.