Swimming at the beach in the summer; it’s as Kiwi as pavlova, jandals, and Buzzy Bee toys. However, unlike these other classic examples of Kiwiana, swimming poses an undeniable level of risk.
While we have all experienced the pain of scraping a toe on concrete walking in jandals, or needing a siesta after too much pavlova on Christmas Day, these are really very mild discomforts. Swimming in the ocean can be unpredictable and very dangerous if you aren’t a confident swimmer, which is why we’re so passionate about water safety here at Fulton Swim School!
Enrolling your child in swimming lessons will give them the skills they need to be safe in the water, but it’s so much more than just that! Jumping in the pool and participating in regular lessons helps children make a splash and grow into confident adults!
Ways Swimming Lessons Help Grow Confident Adults
We know, we know… We’ve mentioned before how swimming can help children to build their confidence, but that’s because we love to watch our students blossom into happy, water-loving, confident kids, even if they initially feel some fearfulness of the water.
Confidence is such a valuable life skill, and it’s especially important as your little one grows up and finds themselves in new, grownup, situations; like when they meet new people, go to high school, or even apply for jobs. It seems far off now, but you’ll blink and they’ll be young adults making their own way in the world, so why not equip them with the confidence they need to tackle adult life head on?
Here are some of the ways swimming lessons could help your child grow into a confident young adult:
Overcome fear!
As you probably know, most children have a level of fear when it comes to being in the water to begin with. It’s totally normal and it doesn’t have to hold them back!
Learning to swim puts us in a new environment, we’ve got to process new sensations, overcome new obstacles, and move our bodies in ways we aren’t used to, so it’s no wonder your little one may feel overwhelmed and fearful at first. Luckily, our amazing swimming teachers are experts in helping children build water confidence so that they can enjoy the experience, and gain valuable life skills from their lessons.
Of course, you want your child to be safe and comfortable, but hopping in the pool and overcoming their fear of the water is incredibly empowering for young kids, and it helps them to feel more confident within themselves, even if it’s scary at first!
Set and achieve their goals
Another way we empower our swimmers at Fulton Swim School is by helping them to set goals, and celebrating their success as they make progress to achieve each milestone.
It’s important to us that each child feels supported and encouraged throughout their lessons. So, every child gets the opportunity to ring our achievement bell when they accomplish something special. We also award ribbons to swimmers as they move through each lesson level, as well as electronic certificates outlining their success!
Helping kids to set achievable goals, supporting them to reach them, and ensuring that they stop to celebrate how far they’ve come, helps to build up their water confidence and shows them that they can do anything they put their mind to!
Work through challenges
Not every swimming lesson will result in immediate success because no one can be that good at everything on their first try. Sometimes our swimmers struggle to learn a new technique, or they face setbacks on their swimming journey, but the important thing is that they don’t give up.
They keep coming to their swimming lessons, they dive straight back into the water, and they overcome each challenge. When they do, they feel a sense of achievement, and they radiate confidence!
Make friends
Swimming lessons give children the opportunity to build their confidence interacting with other children and making new friends. Swimming lessons often foster new and lasting friendships, and they help children to be more caring and supportive to others.
When your child is in the water, they’ll be encouraged to support their peers to overcome challenges and to celebrate other swimmers’ successes. As adults, this will give them the confidence to work as a team, communicate effectively, and be a caring and compassionate friend!
Stay fit and healthy
Regular swimming, or playing in the water, comes with so many health benefits! Studies have shown that regular swimmers are at less risk of a whole range of diseases, and they also report better mental health with decreased stress levels and better sleep.
While generally being healthier and fitter is a good enough reason to spend more time in the water, swimming may also help your child’s posture and coordination. Small things that you might not think about, but all of this will contribute to your child’s confidence as they take on the adult world!
Supporting your child to become a confident adult
When it comes to being an adult, we’ve all felt like we’ve been chucked in the deep end at some point. We’ve all had to tread water to stay afloat, because honestly, it’s a pretty overwhelming world out there!
Regularly participating in swimming lessons will teach your child to overcome challenges and fearfulness, to set goals and accomplish them, to value activities that support their mental and physical health, and they might even make life-long friends along the way.
All of this together will help them to grow their confidence well into adulthood, and who knows, your child may even love the water so much that they grow up to become a swimming teacher! So, why not pop into your local Fulton Swim School with your little one and we’ll show them just how cool* the water is!
*All of our pools are heated to a toasty 32 degrees Celsius, but even though the water isn’t cold, we still think our swim schools are pretty cool!
