Grandizer52: Do you know where your friend's kids took their course? The instructor's name? I'm looking around for someone here on Oahu for my daughter, she's also 13.
How to present scuba to 13 year old daughter without freaking her out...
- Thread starter chickweed
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I think 13 years old is a great age for your daughter to start diving. I got certified at 15 and my son just got his certification at age 11. I would reiterate on others comments and say that you should take the course with her, since at least for the first couple of years you will need to be her dive buddy. I would also recommend a discover scuba somewhere near you and certification dives in a warm tropical environment, All of South Florida including the Florida Keys, especially Key Largo will be great as the waters are warm and clear even in September.
I understand the concerns of others regarding the mental and physical ability of young children to SCUBA, but I can assure you, not only with my personal experience but with a number of classes I've assisted, very often the young kids make better student divers than their parents.
One last thing I would recommend is call the dive shop or instructor before you book your class and make sure they have experience teaching young kids and that they have the appropriate sized gear, this is especially true for the instructor doing the open water checkout dives.
Have fun
I understand the concerns of others regarding the mental and physical ability of young children to SCUBA, but I can assure you, not only with my personal experience but with a number of classes I've assisted, very often the young kids make better student divers than their parents.
One last thing I would recommend is call the dive shop or instructor before you book your class and make sure they have experience teaching young kids and that they have the appropriate sized gear, this is especially true for the instructor doing the open water checkout dives.
Have fun
I did my first Discover Scuba at 13, and got certified the next year - it was one of the best things I've ever done! I have no regrets that my parents let me do that (ok so I might be a little biased ...). Sure, 13 year olds don't think the same way as adults, but most of the time they make amazingly good divers. We frequently get kids in our classes, and I am constantly impressed at how well that they do in our very less than "ideal" diving conditions.
I'm going to agree with the suggestion that you should take the class with her if possible! I think this would really help her stay motivated, alleviate any minor anxiety that she might experience, and most importantly give the two of you something that you can do together! It sounds like this is something that she's really interested in, and I'm sure it would mean a lot to her (and open up sooo many more opportunities for her after certification) if you did it together. I was always slightly disappointed that my parents never really took an interest in diving, and my dedication to it is still a little bit of a disconnect between us.
IMHO doing the classroom portion with an instructor is more engaging and can give a better sense of what to expect (based on stories, answering questions the student might have that aren’t necessarily in the book, etc). Regardless, the bookwork is really not difficult, and most of the 11-13 year olds I’ve seen have had no problem. Definitely talk to the instructor who will be doing your class and get a sense of his experience working with kids. Most reputable shops are pretty good about setting up certain instructors with younger students though!
A lot of people have mentioned having your daughter do a discover SCUBA before getting certified which would be a great motivator, but you might also want to try one and make sure that this is going to be something that you will be comfortable doing!
I'm going to agree with the suggestion that you should take the class with her if possible! I think this would really help her stay motivated, alleviate any minor anxiety that she might experience, and most importantly give the two of you something that you can do together! It sounds like this is something that she's really interested in, and I'm sure it would mean a lot to her (and open up sooo many more opportunities for her after certification) if you did it together. I was always slightly disappointed that my parents never really took an interest in diving, and my dedication to it is still a little bit of a disconnect between us.
IMHO doing the classroom portion with an instructor is more engaging and can give a better sense of what to expect (based on stories, answering questions the student might have that aren’t necessarily in the book, etc). Regardless, the bookwork is really not difficult, and most of the 11-13 year olds I’ve seen have had no problem. Definitely talk to the instructor who will be doing your class and get a sense of his experience working with kids. Most reputable shops are pretty good about setting up certain instructors with younger students though!
A lot of people have mentioned having your daughter do a discover SCUBA before getting certified which would be a great motivator, but you might also want to try one and make sure that this is going to be something that you will be comfortable doing!
Hi from a fellow Nashvillian! I agree with those who said you should take the course with her. My daughter turned 13 while taking her Junior Open Water classes this year, and I took a refresher course along with her.
I'd also like to suggest you reconsider Destin for her first dives. It's my understanding that most of their dives are fairly deep. I'm basing this on pretty limited experience - I've only dove Destin 4-5 times, so my impression may be skewed.
After tons of research, we chose Key Largo for my daughter's first ocean dives, and the experience couldn't have been better. Plus, you can get direct flights on SWA out of Nashville, so that's a plus.
Feel free to PM me if I can help. Some of the dive shops in the Nashville area are better suited for training kids than others, and I'd be glad to share what we learned.
June
I'd also like to suggest you reconsider Destin for her first dives. It's my understanding that most of their dives are fairly deep. I'm basing this on pretty limited experience - I've only dove Destin 4-5 times, so my impression may be skewed.
After tons of research, we chose Key Largo for my daughter's first ocean dives, and the experience couldn't have been better. Plus, you can get direct flights on SWA out of Nashville, so that's a plus.
Feel free to PM me if I can help. Some of the dive shops in the Nashville area are better suited for training kids than others, and I'd be glad to share what we learned.
June
Adam Grose
Contributor
Well.... you could get her into one of the "try scuba" classes that a lot of the shops offer. That would let her see if she likes it, and would also give her some idea of just what is involved with learning to dive. Just a thought.
Adam
Adam
Thanks for all the feedback. My daughter is on-board and excited. We have both worked through the first two lessons of the PADI e-learning material. We'll do our confined dives in August and hopefully do our open water dives in September. jsisemore, thanks for the insights re: Destin. I'll check into Key Largo as well...
That's great that you're taking the class together. You're going to have so much fun diving together!
Most of the Nashville shops lean toward doing their OW checkout dives in Panama City or Destin since they're close, but I wouldn't consider them ideal for young/new divers. The majority of sites in PC are deep, so you wind up doing your dives at the St. Andrews Jetties. I'm assuming Destin would be similar.
A 13 year old will have a junior open water cert, so she'll be limited to 40 feet. There are tons of dives in the Keys at that depth, including a couple wrecks, so you'll have some more choices. No matter where you wind up, I know you'll have a great time though!
Most of the Nashville shops lean toward doing their OW checkout dives in Panama City or Destin since they're close, but I wouldn't consider them ideal for young/new divers. The majority of sites in PC are deep, so you wind up doing your dives at the St. Andrews Jetties. I'm assuming Destin would be similar.
A 13 year old will have a junior open water cert, so she'll be limited to 40 feet. There are tons of dives in the Keys at that depth, including a couple wrecks, so you'll have some more choices. No matter where you wind up, I know you'll have a great time though!
CindyMac
Contributor
I did a "Fun Dive" last Saturday. The overwhelming majority of divers were in the 12-15 year old range. They had attended the Scuba Day Camp that a this particular dive shop had run this summer. They were very impressive - set up their own gear, did very conscientious checks and re-checks. They were very enthusiastic about diving and their enthusiasm permeated the dive! My youngest (23yo) would love to dive, but due to a congenital heart disorder, is not able. She is getting into snorkeling, though.
Beats sitting in front of the TV or hanging at mall.
Beats sitting in front of the TV or hanging at mall.
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