DD16 was 5 when we started lessons. We live in Illinois and never really swam, I just didn't want her to be scared of water like my grandma was, and I wanted her to be able to swim just in case. We did one lesson during the first session, the teacher was great, and she did pretty well. Then she broke her leg. She obviously wasn't able to get in water for 6 weeks, but the next session we got her back in the water. This session had a different teacher that DD did not like. They hopped in the water and blew bubbles in the water an hour every Saturday for a month. That was about it. Then the last lesson of the session, the teacher had them stand on the edge of the pool and basically pushed them all in. I was sitting watching and knew that was the end of swim lessons. I've tried to teach her, other people have tried, too, but she is stubborn. And she can't float - she's solid muscle and just sinks. Well last summer her dance teacher had a party and one of the other teachers decided he'd try to teach her how to swim. It worked! She isn't a fish or anything, but she can swim across a pool and isn't afraid to jump in any more. Going under water still makes her uncomfortable, though.