How do you get a 4 year old to stop being afraid of watter?

Answer 1

You have to try getting him/her in the tub or shower with you. I will be very difficult at first. But do it everyday and work up to a pool. They will hold on to you for dear life. But sooner or later they will discover how much fun it is and beg you to take them constantly. We went through this with my son. Now he loves the pool. But from day one he hated getting baths or showers. And would not go near a pool. Even now if there are a lot of people in a pool he will not go in. It just takes time and patience. Good luck.

Answer 2

If your 4-year old can't swim, it's a great thing that he is afraid of water. If he loved water and couldn't swim, he could very easily run for a pool of water and drown. If your 4-year old can't swim, he is smart to be VERY afraid. Drowning is a leading cause of death in children his age.

If he can swim, it's still ok if he is afraid. Have him play in the rain, or in the bathtub. In the end, respect that he is afraid and let him get used to the water on his own time while taking serious safety precautions with him when he is near the water because he may panic. Personally, I think his fears just need to be respected and it shouldn't be an issue. Think of something you may be afraid of: spiders, roaches, heights..Can you imagine if someone put a spider on you or blind folded you and took you ontop of a mountain to "help" you overcome your fear against your will?? You would not only probably be even more terrified that you were at first, you would probably be very angry at the person for not respecting your fears.

If you want to get him used to water, take him to an ISR instructor and have them teach him how to swim like a fish if you think he is ready. http://www.infantswim.com/

Answer 3

I got my daughter a kiddie pool. You know, one of the really shallow plastic ones? For an alternative, you can also do it in the tub, just don't add too much water. There's a lot of fun stuff she can do in there without really being too deep in it.

* Crayola makes these bath crayons, she can color on the tub or on the walls! They are also easy to clean off.
* There are also tablets you can use to color the water, there's blue, green, yellow, red. They don't color the skin, so you can still bathe her just as you normally would.
* Bath toys. There are lots of toys you can put in there with her to play with such as toys that'll stick to the tub (my son has one with cars and roads, so cool!) squirt toys, etc. Oh speaking of squirt toys, ever tried water guns? My daughter loves chasing us around with the water guns.
* Sprinklers! Run under a sprinkler with her it's fun!
* Bath books. Baby Einstein makes baby bath books, if she's into reading she'll love 'em!
* Swimming lessons. Never underestimate the power of peer pressure. If she sees other kids, older, younger, the same age, go into the water and not have a problem, maybe she'll understand that water isn't scary.
* Visit the aquarium! Show her how all kinds of creatures live and interact within the water. Teach her that water is necessary for our livelihood and invaluable. Then, get her ducks, sharks, starfishes, etc for her tub. Some toys wind up and move in the water. (We have a shark, a frog and a duck that my kids just love!)

Answer 4

Don't try to force the child to go in the water. Don't make an issue about it. Trying to forcibly put a child into the water is just going to create a bigger problem. He/she will outgrow this and you will both be happier if you just give it some time. One of my granddaughters was exactly like this at age 4, but a year later at age 5 she loved playing in the water. You will only reinforce the fear and scare the child even more, possibly scarring them for life, if you don't handle this very carefully and patiently.

Answer 5

this is pretty easy ... he maybe afraid because he had a bad experience related to water like when he was younger or he mightve seen somethin traumatic related to water... u can change it ... u can just show that water is fun ... show him some swimming videos ... or even the bathtub is useful .. just help the child get over the reason why hes afraid of water ... that will help

Answer 6

Look for local babyswim classes. They often involve the parent with the child in the pool, and it's amazing how quickly most kids pick up water skills.

Answer 7

give the child a bucket or pan of water to play in. if you have a yard or patio for a small wading pool, set it up and let him put some water in it just enough to cover his feet. next time add some toys like cars or boats to play with. go slow and don't push. let the kid take it at his own pace.

Answer 8

don't tell the kid not to be afraid. Pretend to give a bath to his/her stuffed animals or dolls. Have him/her participate. Maybe have them turn on the water for you when its bath time. Get some toys too. DOn't stress aobut around the kid when they are freaking out about the water. Have them help you wash dishes/toys/whatever.

Good luck

Answer 9

Go in the water with them and show them that nothing is wrong. Just act like everything is so fun! Teach them things about the water like fish and tell them to act like a fish. =]

Answer 10

I have two girls and when they were young they were afraid of water. I made them take swimming lessons without me there. That way they could not look to me they had to depend on the instuctor.