8th September 2020
| Phil Shaw
The worldwide outbreak of Covid-19 has meant that many children have had a long break from their daycare nursery or pre-school. With social distancing expected to last for at least another 6 months, parents may be worried about how the coronavirus crisis may impact their child’s development.
The disruption of routines due to the coronavirus pandemic can be upsetting for children. As parents, it is important that we be gentle with ourselves and with our children as we all settle into the ‘new normal’. Children (and adults) need cuddles and giggling and play, now more than ever.
Parents may be worried about how the loss of daycare or preschool has impacted their child’s developmental milestones. As a parent, you may be concerned that your child will not be developing the skills that are important for successfully transitioning to formal learning environments such as pre-school and school.
Luckily, we have some wonderful news for parents who want to ensure their child is better prepared for preschool or school now they have reopened: you can increase your child’s school readiness by teaching them to swim!
Researchers from Australia's Griffith University have conducted one of the world’s most comprehensive studies into early-years swimming and have found that babies and pre-schoolers that learn to swim develop “highly valuable skills” that are of “considerable benefit for children as they transition into pre-school and school”.
The study found that babies that learn to swim early in life are up to 15 months ahead of their non-swimming peers in math, counting and language by the time they start school! Early-swimming babies also achieved their physical milestones earlier than non-swimmers, and had better oral expression.
This is wonderful news for current London Baby Swim swimmers and will hopefully promote more parents to take their newborn baby swimming.