Child in class?

[Finnatic]

Hi All,

Tuesday we went to our first OW class. The class is small ( just 6 of us). There is my husband and myself (47 and 50), a couple in their 20's and a father- son team. The father seems to be in his 30's, but his son looks to be about 12. I know there are special classes for children to learn how to dive and I am wondering how this little fellow will fare in a class of adults. Has anyone run across this in a class they've taken?

 

[Walter]

In some respects, children are like adults. Some are fast learners, others are slow learners. Most are somewhere in between. There is nothing in the course that is beyond a 12 year old's mental or physical ability. Emotional maturity could be a problem.

 

[raviepoo]

There are two kids in the class of 9 that I'm assisting with right now. They are doing better than some of the adunlts.

Relax. THe kid has a right to be there. If being in the presence of a child really gets on your nerves, maybe you could pay extra for semi-private lessons, or wait until the next class cycle and hope that there are no kids in the class.

 

[scubasean]

Finnatic once bubbled...
Hi All,

Tuesday we went to our first OW class. The class is small ( just 6 of us). There is my husband and myself (47 and 50), a couple in their 20's and a father- son team. The father seems to be in his 30's, but his son looks to be about 12. I know there are special classes for children to learn how to dive and I am wondering how this little fellow will fare in a class of adults. Has anyone run across this in a class they've taken?

My 14 yr old son recently finished a PADI OW class and loved being taught with adults....Interesting that he often helped one of the adults through the questions in the book, rather than the other way around...

Kids often amaze me, and this was one instance I was quite proud.

I'd rather have one or two kids in class with several adults, rather than have a class that only has kids...(Not sure if that was what was meant by classes designed to teach children how to dive...)

 

[Sebastian]

Unless the kid is being a real "wise guy" , annoying, immature,.. what's the problem?

I did my OW when I was 13 and I was the only one under 20 in my class.

The thing is that there aren't enough under 15's around so you could make a class only for them

I think it's important that kids do their courses with adults. Lets face it, most divers are adults and in the beginning they have to dive with a certified adult anyway.

 

[BradB]

When I certified we had a young girl, I think like 11 or so in our class. She did as well, and in most cases better, than most of the class in about everything, including tables. Dad was smart too. He was there for all class and pool work but did not get in the pool at all. Let her do her own thing. What was funny though was she was my buddy for most pool work and we made quite a pair. She was about 4' tall and 60 lbs and I am 6'3" and 250 lbs. We did use different partners for rescues and drags though.

 

[DeputyDan]

I think its better for the kids to be in a class with mostly adults - there is less chance for horse play and more opportunity to see the serious side (which is important) to safety rules and that everyone (all ages) must follow them to be safe.

 

[scuber steve]

I recently did my SDI OW with my older brother that is 15 and myself. My fater is Padi OW certified and never got in the pool with us, but did the lake dives with us. I personally like having a small class, there is more atention focused towards you and who ever else is doing it. This is just my opinion.

 

[Bob3]

My kids were 14 & 16 when they got certified (had to be old 'nuff to drive themselves), though they'd been blowing bubbles since around 6 years old.
Being "water rats" from the get-go, their class wasn't much of a challenge; every question they asked was replied with: "That's covered in the advanced classes".
(PADI)
They did help out assisting the adults with their water skills though.

Never cut a kid short, they'll very often suprise you. :tease:

 

[mcse_jacksonvil]

had a similar situation with a 12 year old girl who attended the OW class I was in last weekend.
She needed a little bit of personal attention to understand some of the complex tables and DCS bits, but overall the only time I felt she was out of her league was during the physical tests (200 meter swim and 10 minute water treading).
She was clearly at a disadvantage during these points of the course. She did however compelte each and every one of them with no special exceptions so I will honestly say she deserves her cert.