My child was very scary of water since my family never goes swimming. We attended parent-child class the first time that he learnt swimming at 3 years old. That class gave him much comfort since my husband or myself was there. He switched to children classes after finished that parent-child class. So, if your child likes water / swimming, then you may not need to attend parent-child class. Otherwise, parent-child class may be a good choice at the beginning.