You help your children most by giving them safe toys, letting them play in safe places and standing near enough to help, but don't push them and don't warn them either. If you keep warning your daughter, she may become more timid than nature meant her to be and if you caution your son too often, he might ignore all your warnings because he knows you will rescue him if he goes too far.

To help your daughter get rid of her fears, notice her small successes--but not her failures--and read stories to her about children or animals who have fears of their own. Maurice Sendak's "Where the Wild Things Are" (Harper;$6.95) will help her see that everybody has a few monsters hiding in their heads, and a new book called "Sidney Won't Swim" by Hilde Schuurman (Charlesbridge,$15.95) will tell her about a fearful little creature who hated to swim--until he tried it. Sometimes an indirect message can soothe a child better than a parent.
-- The Washington Post, January 2001

A young canine does not want to take swimming lessons. "'I'm not scared,' Sidney grumped. 'I just think swimming is dumb.'" Despite his efforts to miss class, the pup finds himself at the pool. He fibs to his patient teacher, saying that he turns into a monster when wet. While laughing about his incredible story, two friends push him into the pool. After a reprimand from the instructor, the remorseful pals create a huge inner-tube monster that will surely keep Sidney from drowning. Once onboard, he realizes what fun he's been missing. This reluctance to swim will certainly resonate with many readers. Although Sidney's parents and teacher try to help him admit he's afraid, he remains angry and defiant. Unfortunately, his eventual confrontation with his fear is undermined by the effect of being pushed into the water. It's no small wonder that the pup can now admit to being afraid. The pen-and-ink and watercolor illustrations aid in keeping the story warm and mostly cheerful. The pages are softened by washes of color, predominantly in pool blue, with a full-page bordered painting on the left and a small expressive drawing appearing with the text on the right. The energetic characters and common emotions are made more palpable through the art.
-- School Library Journal, February 2001

Childhood fears have never had a more appealing representative than Sidney. All the other little critters that go to school with Sidney are looking forward to their trip to the pool to have their first swimming lesson. In order to avoid the pool, Sidney feigns sickness, leaves his swimming bag behind, hides, and threatens to turn into a huge monster if he gets wet. The adults dealing with Sidney are understanding and supportive, particularly Mr. Paul, the polar bear who is the swimming teacher. He kindly suggests that Sidney just watch the other kids. Unfortunately two of Sidney's friends push him into the pool, laughingly wanting to see the monster he will become. Mr. Paul rescues Sidney and reprimands his friends, who now acknowledge they, too, were afraid the first time they went into the pool. They all work together to find a way for Sidney to overcome his fear and eventually enjoy the water. Sidney Won't Swim reflects the real fears young children have of the unknown. The illustrations showing Sidney's sad little puppy dog face watching the other children having fun sympathetically portray the emotions many young children have when facing new experiences. This book could provide a starting point for discussion about acknowledging fears of the unknown and finding ways to deal with them.
-- Library Talk, December 2001