At Montessori House Brussels, we enjoy taking the children who have reached the age of four for swimming classes and there are many benefits for them.
Developmentally, most children are ready for swimming lessons when they are about 4 years old. By this age, most children can coordinate their movements to swim strokes and kick their feet, which are the key skills needed for successful swimming. The swimming lessons are essential teaching water safety skills; to stretch out on your back while breathing well, keeps you afloat without any significant effort. At the same time, swimming can provide a wealth of mental, social, and safety benefits that other exercises just can’t offer.
What are the benefits of taking swimming classes for children at this young age?
It teaches water safety, starting with being at ease in the water, staying afloat while using swimming techniques, and staying calm, breathing well. From using support such as arm floats and cork belts children gradually progress to using no support at all. Blowing bubbles on the water surface to dipping your head under water, all adds to feel safer and free in the water, thus leading to jumping into the water from the deep end without hesitation and making your way to the other side of the pool. Swimming is an enjoyable method to keep your children active and healthy all year round. It enhances endurance, balance, strength, flexibility and more.
Building lung capacity and cardiovascular health
One of the primary skills swimmers are being taught is how to control their breath, which helps to enhance their lung capacity. This allows oxygen to pump through the body and provide energy more effectively. Lungs and heart work together more effectively; the heart does not have to work as hard to pump out blood and oxygen throughout the body.
Builds muscle and improves concentration
Your child will use muscle groups they might not have had a chance to enhance otherwise. With each swim stroke different muscles are used to kick, pull, and glide through the water. This takes quite a lot of coordination too, both physically and mentally. The attention is on arm pulls and leg kicks, but also on breath control; children have the possibility to find out that concentration and repetition have an impact on their ability to succeed!
Builds Character and confidence
We know children can be a bit worried about the water and new experiences. It can be imposing for new swimmers to leave the wall and take those initial few pulls and kicks toward the other end of the pool. But when they manage their first meters, their self-esteem is growing. As they learn different swim strokes and water safety methods, they will also learn about perseverance, hard work, resilience and more!
As life is one massive pool filled with morals that change us, challenge us, and push us beyond our comfort zone, swimming will provide children the confidence to dive in, helping them to develop life skills thus being able to make waves in the pool and beyond! As you can see, there are many benefits to children swimming early!