My daughter is 8 and taking swimming lessons at school?

Question

my daughter is taking swimming lessons at school and i got very concerned the other day by somethiing she told me. she said it took her a while to get dressed the other day as she had to take a shower so her teacher told her to carry her coat and shoes from the baths to the bus outside therefore she was only wearing her socks and no shoes
does anyone else think this is wrong especially in the cold weather we are having at the minute
the day after the teacher took an egg timer and told her and another little girl they had five minutes to shower dry and get dressed
i dont even think i would be able to do this
just wondered if anyone else thought this was wrong
i have an appointment to see the head teacher about this today but just wanted to know what you people out there thought of my dilemma
she also finds it very embarressing in front of her classmates

thank you all for your answers.
i have taken this up with the headmaster and he is looking into it at this minute.

Answer 1

I think its appaling that a teacher would let your daughter out without her shoes!its freezing outside. I remember my swimming lessons they would always hurry you but that teacher has gone too far. I would definately go in there today and not leave and until you get some sort of explanqation. But keep calm!

Good luck!

Answer 2

I agree it is unacceptable that your daughter was made to go outside without shoes and I would definatly complain about this. However if your daughter is consistently taking a much longer time to get changed than the other children then I can understand why the teacher may be getting frustrated and trying to speed her up (with timer) It feels to me that there are three possible reasons for her being so slow.

1. She is messing around, talking to friends etc. and therfore not getting ready on time. (Although I know you might not like to think this about your child i think itshould be at least considered.) In this case I would talk to the teacher about appropriate solutions to this problem (better than egg timer) but also have a serious word with my daughter about speeding up and not messing around.

2. She is just a very slow dresser. Perhaps in this instance she would benefit from some help, from a parent helper etc, and perhaps she could leave the lesson a bit early so she has more time. She could perhaps skip the shower and just get dressed so she is ready at the same time as the others.

3. She is too embarassed to change in front of her classmates so she is waiting until almost everyone has gone before changing. (this is my hunch as to the real reason.) If this is true then discuss this with the headteacher. Explain that 8 year old girls are begining to become conscious of their bodies, they are not Infants anymore and perhaps they could use changing cubicals (which I def. used to use in my school swimming lessons at that age)

I think you should first acertain whether your child has been at fault at all. If, as i suspect, she hasn't then you should be polite but firm with the teacher, explain the treatment that you find unacceptable towards your daughter and try and come up with a plan to help her get ready in time.

Answer 3

Sometimes the window between the end of the swimming lessons and the bus trip back to school can be very short. However, they need to make sure the children have adequate time to be ready for school. Talk to the teacher and let her know it is not ok for your child to walk to the bus without shoes.
Is it possible for you to help out with the lessons? Some schools have parents assisting before and after swimming lessons getting kids ready, matching socks and shoes to the right children etc. It can be very frustrating trying to get 30 children showered and back to school in a short period of time!
If it really is too hard for them to give your daughter more time, then ask that she finish her lesson a few minutes earlier than the other children so that she can get dressed in time.

Answer 4

I think a few parents should volunteer to help with the little ones getting dressed. The hour of fun would be spoiled if there was a mad rush at the end leaving only 5 mins to get dressed. They should get out of the pool a few mins early to make sure the event is a little more relaxed. By all means tell the teacher about your concern over the situation.

Answer 5

15 minutes would be more realistic than 5. This sounds as if the teacher is on her own time after the swimming and will not lose any of her break irrespective of the discomfort caused to her charges.
In days when most teachers appear to be reluctant to enforce discipline unless bullying or racism are involved, it is bizarre that this teacher appears to be have turned back the clock 50 years.

Answer 6

At my kids school, they ask for parent volunteers to help the kids get dressed after swimming lessons. This is obviously needed at your daughters school.
Also our kids dont shower afterwards. It just takes too long, and most of the little ones cant run their own shower anyway.

Answer 7

I think it's absolutely outrageous, and I would complain as loudly and as long as it takes until something is done about it. I would also withdraw my daughter from school swimming lessons until the matter is resolved. Good luck!