Eyes in

We suggest parents wait until their baby is at least 6 months old and is comfortable practicing the breath holding exercise with the water cup before moving on to this exercise.

This skill teaches children to learn to be comfortable swimming with their face in the water, practices breath control and must be done in a pool as it requires deeper water than the back float. 

To begin to teach baby to put their “eyes in” Start by :

• Positioning baby on their stomach, while holding them underneath their armpits and standing on their left side.
• Say: “Okay _____, we’re going to do eyes in…”. This is the baby’s cue that we’re getting ready to get their face wet!
• Immediately start counting, As you count “1-2-3”, simultaneously give one squeeze for every number said (total of 3 squeezes). This is the baby’s cue to prepare themselves to go under the water.
• After the count of three, say “eyes in”, while simultaneously lifting the child and giving faster little squeezes. This is the child’s final cue, letting them know that their head is going under the water NOW
• On the child’s descent into the water, remove the right hand from under the baby’s armpit and place that hand behind their head. Using one hand behind the head, and one hand under the armpit, guide the baby under the water and towards the edge. By placing a hand on the baby’s head we want to direct the baby’s eyes toward the bottom of the pool.
• Keeping eyes toward the bottom of pool will help prevent water from going up baby’s nose.
• Allow baby to find the edge of the pool and if they are capable encourage them to grab and to pull themselves up onto the edge. Maintain a good grip under baby’s armpits throughout this exercise.
• These exercises are designed to be done gradually. As you begin put baby under water for just a quick second, increasing intervals as baby becomes ready. Repeat exercises as necessary to build confidence. Be patient the more you practice, the more both of you will learn.

Practicing this skill might bring resistance or a reaction from babies that do not like to have water on their face. However, if you practiced the breath control exercise with the cup of water your baby shouldn’t have too much trouble completing the exercise. When done carefully and paying special attention to hand positioning and timing, this activity will encourage baby to learn what to do if they are submerged under water, they will learn to hold their breath until they pop up out of the water.