Get Kids Involved In Scuba January 20, 2011 by lukesheppard

I’m sure it wouldn’t surprise you to discover that the majority of children in the United Kingdom take a more ‘active’ interest in sports such as Football, Rugby, Cricket, Tennis and Athletics. There are many reasons for this but primarily it’s due to the fact that schools are encouraged to educate these sports as part of the national curriculum, and the fact that clubs and local parks are vastly accessible make these particular sports, above anything else, convenient. It shouldn’t be frowned upon. After all, this is where we begin to create the next generation of top class elite athletes.

Getting younger people into activities such as Scuba Diving is understandably a lot more difficult. The appeal of this particular water sport may be higher than you imagine, but it requires an awful lot of commitment from the child as well as huge support, time, and often money from parents. With school commitments, family concerns and financial constraints its sometimes hard to find a window where your child can attend classes, but if they’re interest is legitimate then the first thing you should do (as a parent or a child) is find out the closest place to you which offers dive training. Many local swimming pools operate classes to get you involved and this is the logical, and perhaps best, place for you to begin. You must also be physically healthy, and by this I mean you shouldn’t suffer from any respiratory disorders or endurance issues as this may affect your chances of becoming a diver based on medical grounds.

When you do begin your training its highly advised that you undertake a course which is affiliated with the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) as the sport is limited to those who have received training from the organisation. Within your early sessions you will learn how to sustain breathing, neutral buoyancy and how to be flexible underneath the water surface. You will also be taught all the vital safety information as well as be informed about other pieces of diving kit that you may not have heard of, or be familiar with (many may expect you to purchase your own kit before training commences). Basic training however isn’t enough. To perform dives you also need to be certified, and to do this you need to complete a basic open water course in order to be able to perform outdoor dives with a dive master. From here on in you can then choose to do a more advanced course if you wish to pursue a career as a professional diver. However this takes an awful lot of time and determination if you wish to make it to professional status. If you are a young person looking to get involved then start off by attending an introductory diving course and decide from there which course of action would benefit you the most. It might be hard work and perhaps a little daunting at first, but with the right guidance and help you might be surprised with what you can achieve. If you never try then you’ll never know!