Let me count the ways.
We have participated in our neighborhood swim team since Casey was 5 years old. Joey joined the very next year, when he was 4. This is an activity that has enriched our lives in so many ways, and every year I come to appreciate it more.
Why is swim team so worthwhile? Just a few reasons–
- It taught my kids to swim. This is the most obvious thing. It has been a very cost-effective way to make them safe and comfortable in the water.
- Swimming is so good for you. It’s fantastic cardiovascular exercise, and you can do it your whole lifetime. Low chances for traumatic injury (no ball is going to hit you in the face, for instance).
- My kids know tons of people from the neighborhood. Whenever we go to the “big” pool for fun, the kids invariably know someone there- it might be a 13 year old girl, but there will be someone for them to play with.
- Swimming is not segregated by sex. The girls and boys practice together, and sometimes go head-to-head (not for points, but heats will be combined at times). And the girls win a lot of the time!
- Swim team is not segregated too much by age. There is lots of mixing of age groups- the older kids help out in the younger kids’ practices, and the younger kids watch the bigger kids’ races because they can be exciting and to see what they are supposed to be doing. I love it when a group of teens or pre-teens will get together and cheer on a 6 year old.
- Swim team teaches lots of valuable lessons. The officials enforce the rules on everyone- no exceptions if you are 4 years old. If a child breaks the rules, he or she will be disqualified, or DQ’d. If this happens, the swimmer will receive no ribbon, points for the team, or even be given a time. It will be as if the child did not swim at all. Everyone DQs sometime. It’s part of it. The kids learn to deal with it and move on. Then, when they get through a race successfully, they know they achieved something.
- It’s not humiliating. There is no announcement made, “Casey DQ’d his entire relay team because he jumped off too early.” Or ”Joey forgot to kick and added 6 seconds to his backstroke time.” Results are posted and you have to look for them. However,
- It is competitive. The team keeps up with every racer’s times and there are invitationals we participate in. Kids can set their own goals and work all season to attain them. For instance, last year Casey decided that he wanted to swim in the individual medley, or IM. He worked on all 4 of his strokes and learned his turns. In the next-to-last meet, he was ready. He got up there, 8 years old, with the elite 10 year old boys, and made a good showing. Bonus: the boys who regularly swam the IM were very kind and encouraging to him. He’s still working on it this year, and it’s something he’s done all on his own, because he wanted to do it.
- Kevin and I have met so many people through the team. It’s not easy for us to get to know others; we are pretty self-contained. I always have someone to talk to at the meets and practices, and Kevin usually volunteers as a timer, so he knows the other usual timers and scribes. It’s fun for us, too.
So that’s just what I can think of off the top of my head. This is all new to me because sports are not what I grew up appreciating. As my sister said, our family is better at producing mathletes than athletes. I am aware that other sports and activities can have the same benefits- what is it that you love as a family, and why?
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