Leopold Swim School Geelong, believes a child’s swimming success is built over time. It is built on confidence, water familiarisation, understanding, development of physical capabilities and a feel for the water. Each of these factors requires ongoing attention, ongoing swimming lessons. Too often guardians decide to skip swimming lessons in Term 1 to support their child’s transition when starting school, the start of a new school year or starting kinder. At Leopold Swim School Geelong, we believe if you stop swimming it will have a negative effect on your child’s ability to be safe in the water.
Leopold Swim School supports the following statements:
- swimming lessons all year round is non-negotiable to ensure your child’s swim development;
- stopping learn to swim can create an idea for your child that swimming is negotiable (not a life skill, like learning to read and write) and then they are more likely to attempt to try to stop swimming;
- not swimming in Term 1 will dramatically delay your child’s swim journey;
- water confidence and water familiarisation are paramount in swimming success. Time out of the water will delay these important abilities;
- fear of the water for a beginner swimmer increases dramatically as your child grows older. The quicker your child becomes familiar with the water the more success they will have;
- once the learn to swim journey starts, Aqua Babies should not miss a single term as it will erase all understanding of water familiarisation and breath control. These early skills are not yet autonomous, to break and recommence would be like starting from scratch and restarting from an older age often allows fear to develop; and
- swimming is the ultimate extra-curriculum activity, as swimming is fantastic for mental health. Being in the water is the best way to “blow away the cobwebs” after a busy day at school or kinder.
The graph provided is a guide into your child’s swim development. The blue line represents ongoing long term continuous swim lessons throughout the year. The red line highlights your child’s swim development if your child were to stop swimming.
