Swimming is a healthy and fun activity for young children, provided that they know how to stay safe around water. Being comfortable around water is not only essential for safety during swimming, but anywhere the child is exposed to water, such as in the bath. This makes swimming one of the few sports that can actually save your child’s life if taught properly.
According to the CDC, unintentional drowning was the number one cause of unintentional injury deaths in the United States amongst children age one to four in 2014. It was also the second highest cause of death amongst children five to nine and fifth highest among children aged 10 to 14. This highlights why it is so important for children of all ages to learn how to swim. Thankfully, there are reputable institutions that offer swimming lessons in Chandler AZ and other areas, allowing children to receive proper training at state of the art centers. In addition, there are a lot of other benefits to swimming for young children.
Swimming’s Great for Building Confidence
Because good swim schools teach children new skills and allow them to progress to more advanced stages as they master these skills, it can be a huge confidence booster. It also helps children believe in their own abilities, which improves their self-esteem.
It Helps Combat Childhood Obesity
According to Trust for America’s Health, childhood obesity rates have more than tripled since 1980 (http://healthyamericans.org/obesity/). This also meant a rise in serious health issues for children, such as type 2 diabetes, obstructive sleep apnea and even mental health disorders, which are all linked to obesity. Because swimming provides a full body workout but remains low impact, it is something that even overweight children can enjoy without risk of injury.
Swimming Builds Strength and Coordination
Learning how to swim comes with no obligation to take part in any type of sport, but it can be a great stepping stone for children who want to do so. Swimming can be an individual or team sport, and the strength as well as coordination it builds helps with other sports too. Best of all, it comes with far fewer risks of injury than other types of sports.
It Helps Kids to Make New Friends
Learning how to swim exposes kids to other children with whom they can form new friendships. Often children who are not into sports can struggle to make new friends, but because swimming is such a low impact sport, it is accessible to kids of all ages and physiques. Because swimming is fun, it also helps with the social development of children when they are in the pool with other kids.
Swimming Doesn’t Require a Lot of Money or Equipment
Many types of sports can be prohibitively expensive due to the amount of equipment and protective gear required to take part. This is not the case with swimming, as it is taught without the need for any expensive gear.