We are commonly asked if goggles are recommended or required for lessons. In short, goggles are NOT recommended, especially for beginners.  

At the Farnsworth Swim School, we never recommend using goggles when learning to swim, because this creates a dependency on them & can become a crutch.

  • It might make things easier in the short-term because many swimmers feel safer when they open their eyes, but it makes it harder in the long-term.
  • Our goal is water safety and empowering our swimmers to be the best swimmers possible, and learning to swim with goggles will create obstacles later on.

Being dependent on goggles when 1st learning is not setting the swimmer up for success!

  • By learning without goggles, this trains the swimmer to be comfortable putting their face in the water and getting water in their eyes.
  • Beginners must practice putting their eyes in the water and work through their discomfort in order to become water safe. 

Moving through the discomfort of putting their face in the water is a hurdle that they need to move through to be a good swimmer.

  • Once they have mastered opening their eyes and are comfortable with their face in the water, they can use goggles.
  • We would only recommend goggles for intermediate- advanced swimmers. The purpose of goggles is for lap swimming.

The more that a swimmer practices putting their face underwater and dealing with getting water in their eyes, the more comfortable they’ll become!