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Why teach your child to swim?

Why teach your child to swim?

Some people question are baby swimming lessons worth it and don’t put much importance on learning to swim from a young age but there are so many benefits to starting swimming lessons with your baby or toddler! It’s not only fun but also an essential life skill so it is good to get started from a young age.

Are baby swimming lessons worth it?

 

Water confidence and safety are two of the most important reasons as it is so reassuring to parents if their child knows how to be safe around water! Our lessons not only teach babies and toddlers how to have fun in the water, but there is also a big focus on how to be safe in the water; from learning how to hold on to the side of the pool, to swimming from underwater back to the surface.

Swimming is a life-saving skill and a comprehensive and easy workout with advantages beyond physical growth and health improvement. Having basic swim skills can save a young child from drowning, a leading cause of death in children under five, not only that but swimming is enjoyable and provides long-term health benefits!

Swimming is also a great way to bond and have fun with your child. Understandably it can feel quite daunting to some new parents taking their child into the water for the first time, but our lessons are all about having fun, so when you see them enjoying being in the water you will as well. It is not uncommon for parent’s to be fearful of water or not to be able to swim themselves, but that shouldn’t be a reason to stop you taking them to classes, as our teachers will be able to support you on how to hold your child safely and give you the confidence needed to take your little ones swimming.

So here are 10 TOP reasons why you should take your baby to swimming lessons!

Baby swimming develops the whole child

 

Scientific research at the German Sports College found that infant swimming classes enhance a child’s mental, physical, and emotional development. The children in swim classes were more potent and synchronized. They performed better in terms of intellect and problem-solving. 

 

Furthermore, they exhibited better emotional self-discipline and control. Independence, feeling at ease in social situations, and self-esteem were all rated higher.

 

Infant swimming improves the balance and coordination of the child

 

Dr. Sigmundsson found in 2009 at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology that children involved in swim classes improved their balance, mobility, and gripping abilities. The disparity lasted until the youngsters were five years old. Even at the age of five, the swimmers enrolled in a swim school outperformed their classmates in terms of balance, mobility, and gripping abilities.

 

Children involved in a swim school have higher IQ’s

 

According to a 2011 study conducted in Melbourne, Australia, children who learned to swim by the age of five had significantly higher IQs. They built up their muscles faster than toddlers playing on the floor. Swimming required them to utilize ALL of their muscles while playing on the floor needed them to use just specific muscles.

 

A child doing swimming lessons can create new nerve pathways

 

When a kid moves or interacts with his environment, the impulses running through his neurons excite nerve fibers, causing them to develop branches and twigs that reach out to neighboring neurons. New brain pathways are formed when these events are repeated. These new nerve pathways provide the groundwork for complex neural networks that guide a child’s higher-level brain development.

 

Swimming lessons can improve a child’s memory capacity

 

According to research, the quantity of movement a person makes impacts the size and memory capacity of the hippocampus. Dr. Art Kramer of the University of Illinois and Pittsburgh examined the hippocampi of 165 individuals and discovered that fitter people had bigger hippocampi. More hippocampal tissue translates to higher memory.

 

Infant swimming can improve the self-confidence of a child

 

According to Liselott Diem’s research, infants who received swim lessons between the ages of 2 months and four years were more autonomous, adapted better to new circumstances, and had more self-confidence. This is an early sign that a toddler learns to collaborate in a social framework during swimming lessons. When children take turns, share, and work together, they will feel belonging, which boosts self-esteem and social trust.

 

It is the best way for a child to learn water safety

 

According to the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, a component of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drowning is the third most significant cause of accidental injury or death globally. Every year, this causes more than 359,000 fatalities which are 7 percent of all injury-related deaths worldwide. The World Health Organization (WHO) thinks that these statistics are likely to be exaggerated. Unfortunately, children under the age of 14 account for more than 20% of all fatalities. Furthermore, drowning is the second leading cause of mortality in children in ages one to four years old. Drowning can occur in various situations; however, the inability to swim remains the leading cause of drowning.

 

These unprecedented events might easily be avoided with early swimming instruction. In addition to swimming skills, additional methods are learned while swimming such as safety swimming and prevention. Such skills include the capacity of the body to hold underwater, get out of the water, or swim to the side, all of which may save toddlers one day. This is one way for children to keep themselves safe around water and to avoid the risk of children drowning.

 

It builds a strong bond between parents and their child

 

Numerous studies have shown that skin-to-skin contact between mother and child shortly after delivery and throughout the first few months is an early sign of one of the most important elements influencing good growth and development. Newborns have no intestinal microflora and no ability to regulate their body temperature. These two are compensated for by constant touch with mother. These interactions enhance the two’s connection. This is particularly true for parents who have more than one kid. Swimming lessons may compensate for a child’s loss of time by providing brief bursts of personal interaction.

 

It is one of the most effective methods to spend quality time

 

Swimming lessons allow both parents and infants to spend time doing meaningful and enjoyable activities. At the same time, you’re growing and enjoying the rewards. Swimming may begin as soon as your kid is born, even before they are immunized.

 

And the best until last, it promotes sleep! 🙂

And possibly the biggest benefit of all is sleep! Swimming helps to promote better sleeping patterns in children, and whilst it isn’t going to miraculously make your baby sleep through the night, the exercise will make them sleepier which in turn will aid a good nights sleep – and I think it’s safe to say that all parents need more of that!

 

These reasons combined with the feeling of seeing the excitement on your child’s face after their first splash or their first solo swim, are why it’s so good to get your child in the pool as soon as possible, and why we think that baby swimming lessons are worth it 100%!