Getting my 11 y/o into diving

[Barrel SpongeBob]

Getting senior parental units to discover dive is the same thing. I notice pool and ocean outlook totally different with the latter breeding immense anxiety from vastness/wildlife. In this situation, best to let the DM parent the baby boomers

 

[geordy]

I’m in the process of getting my 9 year old daughter into SCUBA. For years she wanted to dive after seeing divers at the aquarium. I have always dreamed of taking the family on diving vacations. My intent has always been to support her comfort level so she feels the fun and no pressure. Recently she has said she is not that into SCUBA anymore. She knows that I dream of doing family dive trips so she is ready to work with me. I have made sure that she knows she has complete veto power over anything dive related (anyone can call any dive for any reason). She is about to do a SSI SCUBA Explorer camp at the local dive shop. 5 days, 3 hrs a day, in the pool. I promised her that if she is not comfortable, we can talk about it and she can quit when she wants. If she enjoys it, she can drop her Junior Open Water next year. I’m crossing my fingers right now.

 

[BoundForElsewhere]

I’m in the process of getting my 9 year old daughter into SCUBA. For years she wanted to dive after seeing divers at the aquarium. I have always dreamed of taking the family on diving vacations. My intent has always been to support her comfort level so she feels the fun and no pressure. Recently she has said she is not that into SCUBA anymore. She knows that I dream of doing family dive trips so she is ready to work with me. I have made sure that she knows she has complete veto power over anything dive related (anyone can call any dive for any reason). She is about to do a SSI SCUBA Explorer camp at the local dive shop. 5 days, 3 hrs a day, in the pool. I promised her that if she is not comfortable, we can talk about it and she can quit when she wants. If she enjoys it, she can drop her Junior Open Water next year. I’m crossing my fingers right now.

I want to do that!

 

[Rob9876]

I’m in the process of getting my 9 year old daughter into SCUBA. For years she wanted to dive after seeing divers at the aquarium. I have always dreamed of taking the family on diving vacations. My intent has always been to support her comfort level so she feels the fun and no pressure. Recently she has said she is not that into SCUBA anymore. She knows that I dream of doing family dive trips so she is ready to work with me. I have made sure that she knows she has complete veto power over anything dive related (anyone can call any dive for any reason). She is about to do a SSI SCUBA Explorer camp at the local dive shop. 5 days, 3 hrs a day, in the pool. I promised her that if she is not comfortable, we can talk about it and she can quit when she wants. If she enjoys it, she can drop her Junior Open Water next year. I’m crossing my fingers right now.

Welcome to the forums, I'm also in TN. That scuba camp sounds like fun -- hope she enjoys it a lot!

 

[Scubafitravers]

I got certified when I was ten and I am now an instructor who has taught a lot of kids. It sounds like he is in to marine life, which is great! It will be scary but kids like to feel like superheroes so if you get really excited about it and don't show your concern, that can sometimes help them get over the mental block that you are worried about. I think starting off with snorkeling is always wise, and finding an instructor that is good with kids is equally important. Going with your child for the first dive can sometimes make it harder, and giving them space to overcome that fear is also important - even though it is scary! I always take a lot of time to ease them into the water, first showing them how everything works on land and reassuring them that I will be there the entire time, then we typically go in the water and stick our faces in so we can feel what it's like to breathe with a reg, eventually we sit on our knees with barely any water over our heads, and slowly we will make it to deeper water (still very shallow). Your attitude towards the experience and the instructors attitudes are maybe the most crucial bits! I am so thankful that my parents got me into it young, some of my favorite childhood memories are from family dive trips and it led me to my awesome work as an instructor too! Kids are curious and adventurous and less fearful than adults in a lot of cases, diving is a great place to channel that.

 

[geordy]

Just as an update, my 9yr daughter completed the SSI SCUBA Explorer camp. The kids all learned the same skills that are covered in the Open Water certification. She had a good time and said she is willing to get certified next year. Looks like I’ll be spending a yr getting her gear setup.

She did say that her mouth consistently hurt, so I will make sure I get small, customized mouthpieces for her.

 

[Belzelbub]

Just as an update, my 9yr daughter completed the SSI SCUBA Explorer camp. The kids all learned the same skills that are covered in the Open Water certification. She had a good time and said she is willing to get certified next year. Looks like I’ll be spending a yr getting her gear setup.

That's great. When my kids were getting certified, they were definitely tiny compared to their current size. That can absolutely pose a problem with some gear like BCs and wetsuits. Some manufacturers offer a lot of adjustability with BCs. I was able to get them BCs that they can still use. All the straps were pulled tight, though now they are a bit looser. For wetsuits, I just waited. I knew they'd outgrow them quickly, so waited a bit until they stabilized. Just dove with them in warm water until they had wetsuits.

She did say that her mouth consistently hurt, so I will make sure I get small, customized mouthpieces for her.

That should help. Part of the problem may be her thinking that she needs to bite down harder than she actually does. Another part may be that the bite wings are too long and putting pressure on her jaw. The moldable mouthpieces should help to solve both. You'll need to start by trimming the length down, but then once molded, it should be a lot more comfortable. If it still hurts, then it may be from just biting down too hard. That should improve with time.

 

[USdiver1]

Now this is just a sign of the times, but when I started diving as a young teen in the 1970s there were no child or adolescent sized wet suits. So I wound up with a nylon one side, two piece [rib cage high lower, and beavertail jacket] wet-suit, all in small, female. Great except for two small, or really not so small rubber bumps on my jacket. Apparently the original owner who was my height but not my gender was rather well endowed and had the suit custom fit for her physique. To my teenage addled brain, these were unaccptable, so I performed a wetsuit, breast reduction with a box cutter and a can of neoprene cement. All worked out, wet-suit-wise, but I had two neoprene cement Xs on the front of my suit, until I outgrew it, and it finally disintegrated from too much UV exposure.