The benefits of swimming and dance for children

It’s the new year, so if you are like the majority of us, you are currently planning your families schedule and the children’s activities for 2018, ie how to positively channel their seemingly boundless energy! With so many activities and sports to choose from, and the costs and time commitment involved, how can we make the right decision?
To this end, 2 Emu Plains businesses with decades of experience between them – Eva Bory’s Swim School and You Can Dance – have joined forces to offer local residents the chance to experience the children’s services we offer, available right on your doorstep in Bromley Rd. Did you know that learning to swim and learning to dance are both complimentary to each other and hugely beneficial to a child’s development? Let’s start with swimming. Research conducted by Griffith University over four years and 7000 children has concluded that children who swim demonstrate more advanced cognitive and physical abilities than other children. Lead researcher Professor Robyn Jorgensen said “While we expected the children to show better physical development and perhaps be more confident through swimming, the results in literacy and numeracy really shocked us. The children were anywhere from six to 20 months ahead of the normal population when it came to cognitive skills, problem solving, mathematics, reading, counting, story recall, language and following instructions.” Professor Jorgensen said that as well as achieving physical milestones faster, the swimming children scored significantly better in visual-motor skills such as cutting paper, colouring in and drawing lines and shapes. Not a bad extra from an activity that can also save your child’s life! Similarly, just as crawling helps babies form connections between the two hemispheres of the brain, dancing helps with cognitive development in young children by laying down more neurological pathways to help them with both physical and mental tasks. Dance also teaches children about cooperation and teamwork, builds confidence, improves coordination, body control, balance and problem solving, develops your child’s spatial awareness, and provide an outlet for imagination and creativity. You Can Dance offers a range of classes and programs for children aged 2.5 to adults in Dance, Tumbling, Cheerleading & more. Both swimming and dance have the potential to increase your child’s flexibility, range of motion, physical strength and stamina. The repetitive movements involved in both activities can improve muscle tone, correct poor posture, increase balance and improve overall cardiovascular health. Both are aerobic forms of exercise, and in an age where we have more overweight children than ever before, both dance and swimming can potentially help them to increase their fitness and improve their eating habits. Becoming a skilled swimmer or dancer requires practice, discipline and focus, skills that can be useful in other areas of your child’s life, and often spills over into their academic pursuits. Additionally – both activities are great fun!
Pop into Eva Bory’s Swim School or You Can Dance, both in Bromley Road Emu Plains, this February – You Can Dance are offering a free 7 day pass to any children currently enrolled or who enrol at Eva Bory’s Swim School, and Eva Bory’s Swim School is offering a free lesson to any You Can Dance students who enrol in swimming lessons!