10 Signs You May Be a Helicopter Swim Parent
10 Signs You May Be a Helicopter Swim Parent
When I was a kid, we didn’t have year-round sports in my small town. We didn’t specialize in one sport at an early age or take private lessons.
Today, we spend countless hours driving our kids to practice—at dawn, in the evenings, to meets on weekends—50 weeks a year. We want our kids to be successful in academics and swimming. All this emphasis on success can lead to “helicopter parenting.”
We helicopter for many reasons. We no longer feel our society is safe, where our kids can roam freely and play outside, running in and out of neighbors’ yards, or riding bikes for miles. So, we take over our child’s free time and provide structured activities. The competition to get into college makes academics more of a priority than in previous generations, so we hover over their homework, too. The downside of constant helicoptering is that we don’t let our kids experience failure or how to learn from mistakes.
Here are 10 signs that you might be a helicopter swim parent. These examples are from my own mistakes and observing parents through the years.
