After the birth of the baby, fathers and mothers are seized by a burning desire to immediately begin to develop the child. But how? He's tiny and doesn't know anything...

In fact, a newborn knows a lot and knows a lot. He has reflexes: he can suck, hold on tightly to his fingers (grasping reflex), push off with his legs from the support, and if he tilts his body slightly forward in a vertical position, the baby will take his first steps (stepping reflex). There is another reflex - breath holding. When water or a strong air jet hits the face, the baby reflexively draws air into the lungs and holds its breath for a few seconds. Wise nature has made it so that even if a child accidentally falls into the water, he will not choke for some time. It is on this unique ability of newborns that the methods of teaching babies to swim are based.

Useful from all points of view

Swimming is an amazing sport. Almost all the major muscles of the body are involved here, and the load on the spine (and, therefore, the risk of injury) is minimal. Swimming develops the cardiovascular system, increases endurance and has a beneficial effect on breathing: the lungs straighten out, and their volume increases. Most newborns love water: they splashed in their mother's tummy for nine months, and therefore they are more comfortable in the bath than on land.

Water is especially useful for premature babies: the body in it weighs less, and babies quickly catch up with their "land" peers who were born with normal weight.

Like a fish in water

Experience shows that a one-year-old baby who can swim is real. First, children learn to swim underwater, then little by little they begin to float on the surface. Hence the conclusion: in order to teach a child to swim, he must first be taught to dive. In most cases, kids are not enthusiastic about this idea, and a lot of perseverance and patience are required from parents so that the baby understands that diving is great. Many fathers and mothers doubt whether the game is worth the candle, that is, whether it is necessary to spend time and nerves on teaching a child to swim. At the age of five, he will learn like all normal children! Let's try to weigh the pros and cons.

A word to supporters of early sailing. Here are their arguments:

Swimming improves health, and the ability to hold your breath underwater develops the lungs.
Early swimming is a guarantee that the child will not be afraid of water and will not drown if he accidentally falls into the water. Statistics show that children drown (many children!) every year, and in 78 percent of cases they choke in shallow waters and even ordinary puddles, unable to hold their breath.
After swimming, the children sleep soundly. Swim with your baby and sleep peacefully at night!
Diving - good way rinse the nose and treat a runny nose.
Swimming with parents in the pool is a great vacation for the whole family.
By swimming, you learn to communicate with your baby and understand the signals that he gives you.

Objections of opponents of early sailing:

The first diving experience often ends with a heart-rending cry of a baby and a pre-infarction state of a father - mother - grandmother. Isn't it better to save the nerves of the parents and the psyche of the child?
If a grown-up kid is not afraid of water, he may well take the initiative and try to swim in the pond on occasion (naturally, without adult supervision). Do I need to say what such an initiative is fraught with?
At a more conscious age, teaching a child to swim is much easier.
What kind of trust between a child and parents can we talk about if a mother puts a baby under water with her own hands? In fairness, we note that if the first difficulties are overcome, the child is calm about the water: he knows that his mother's hands are there too.
By the age of six months, the bath becomes too small for swimming, and not everyone has a pool next to the house.

Mom is the best teacher

All authors of early swimming methods agree on one thing: there is no better teacher than a mother. The key to success is mother's confidence. If you decide to teach your child to dive, you need to start after birth: after all, by three months, the breath-holding reflex completely disappears. Ideally, for the first time, an instructor is engaged with the baby, who shows parents what and how to do. From the age of one and a half months, you can go to a special Children's swimming pool, where the "baby group" is engaged. Such pools have now appeared in kindergartens and clinics in Moscow. There you can do a lot of useful exercises, for which the bath is small, and for grown-up kids, the pool is a great opportunity to swim to your heart's content.

T Only the brave conquer the seas

Our mothers and grandmothers bathed their children in special baths, with the greatest precautions: so as not to catch a cold! But the kids are happy to splash in the usual, adult bathroom, if you give them such an opportunity. You can start swimming when the umbilical wound heals. Sterility in the bath is completely optional: just wash it well before bathing. There is also no need to add potassium permanganate to the water, but if the baby has irritation on the skin, bathing with a decoction of the string will benefit him. Sea salt baths are traditionally used to treat children with disorders of the nervous system. These baths are exciting, so they are not recommended before bedtime.

The water should not be too warm: children move actively in cold water, and fall asleep in warmth. Don't be afraid to keep the door open - the baby catches a cold not so much because of the cold, but because of the change in temperature (this is the effect you get if you transfer the baby from a heated bathroom to a cool room). Many parents are afraid that water will get into their ears, and insert cotton wool there while bathing. This is completely redundant - water cannot cause middle ear disease.

How long to swim in the bath? Look at the baby: someone is ready to bathe for several minutes, but you can’t pull someone out of the bathroom without a scandal. If your baby is an active bather, keep a steady stream of warm water running to keep the tub warm. Dousing with cold water after bathing is a great way to harden your baby; it can be used from the first days of life.

Everyone bathes

The baby is immersed in water immediately. If the mother talks to him and explains what is happening, the baby feels more confident. Of course, he won’t understand the words, but his mother’s friendly intonations will certainly reach him. Some babies like to swim on their tummy, others on their back. Start the procedure with what the baby likes best. When bathing on your stomach with your right hand, support the head under the chin, and place your left hand on the back of the head. thumb right hand you can cover his mouth, besides, many kids are happy to gnaw on their mother's hand - this adds to their courage. In this position, the child is "led" through the bathroom back and forth and in figure eights.

Choose the pace of movements individually: some kids love sharp turns and waves when the bath is almost overflowing, others prefer to move slowly. Bring the child close to the side: feeling support under his feet, he will push off and swim to the other end almost on his own. When the baby swims on its back, support the head with one hand and the bottom with the other. Many children enjoy turning from back to tummy and vice versa. You can also swim in an upright position - in the "frog" position. At the same time, with one hand you support the baby under the breast, and with the other, you press the bent legs to the tummy. This position resembles the position in which the baby was in the womb, children love her very much.

The most crucial moment is diving. At the word "dive" the child is gently blown in the face or splashed with water on him. As a rule, at this moment the baby closes his eyes tightly and holds his breath. Then you can briefly dip his head into the water. When the child has mastered diving and can hold his breath for a few seconds, you can try to let him go free swimming (not for long!). The kids love it. Over time, the baby will learn to swim the entire bath under water.

In the pool you can catch a floating toy, dive with your mother and sing "Baba sowed peas", as well as swim with your mother or father on your chest and stomach. For grown up champions, jumping from the side into the water causes a storm of delight.

If at home something suddenly went wrong with swimming (diving, swimming), going to the children's pool and consulting an experienced instructor will put everything in its place.

There are special devices for bathing babies - sleeves, "mermaid cap", leg cuffs, flippers. How and what to use, the instructor will show you. But experts are unanimous on one thing: do not give your child an inflatable ring. This initially forms an incorrect body position and harms further learning.

Captain, captain, smile!

As a rule, babies love water. But when it comes to diving, the roar can start. After two or three attempts, at the mere thought of diving, parents are horrified and put an end to this idea. Here are some ideas on how to make diving fun.

Take your child around the bathroom at the same pace, then (literally for a second) dip his head into the water and keep moving as if nothing had happened.
Sing a song or tell a rhyme, and do not change the intonation and tempo: the baby should hear his mother's even voice both under water and after emerging.
Swim together! Nothing soothes like a mother, if she herself is relaxed and calm.
Feed in water. Children under water open their eyes, and if the baby sees his mother's breast right in front of him, he will swim to it at all costs, you can be sure! And the reward will be the wonderful mother's milk, which the baby will receive when it emerges.
The sound of running water has a magical effect on children, so do not turn off the tap: the murmur calms the little swimmer.
Notice which movements the child likes best, and move on to them immediately after emerging. It can be vertical jumping or frog pose.
Make the bathroom inviting: hanging colorful toys and colorful balloons from the ceiling is a good way to distract the child.
Be sure to find a way to soothe the little one in the bath. He must leave her without tears, otherwise he will develop a persistent fear of water.

And one more thing: bathing should not be a duty. Don't go swimming and diving just because it's fashionable and the boy next door can dive. If you do not have a soul for this, and the baby will not get any pleasure from the water.

Personal experience

I really love to swim. And when the child was born, I decided that swimming is what we need. From the very beginning, I saw that the baby liked to swim: he immediately calmed down in the water. But he dived, frankly, without enthusiasm. We started going to the pool. And after the very first lesson, the kid changed his attitude to diving: at the word "dive" he broke into a smile and, emerging, burst into laughter. At the sight of a bath or a pool, he impatiently waved his arms and legs, saying with all appearance: "Faster into the water!"

When my little one began to sit, we quickly mastered jumping from the side, and by the age of one, the whole family splashed in big pool With sea ​​water. The kid confidently swam under water from mom to dad and back, and everyone got great pleasure.

A friend also decided to go swimming with the child, but the baby reacted to diving with heart-rending cries. Mom decided not to torture the child. Yes, her perfectly healthy three-year-old child cannot swim, but I don't think he suffers much from this. I have no doubt - they found other ways to make communication harmonious and joyful

What swimming helps to decide, why a common pool for a baby is better than a home bath, and what turns out to be the most difficult for parents who decide to make swimming a part of their baby's life, tells T infant swimming rener, teacher of the Academy of Fitness-Ukraine Olga Shvedova.

- this is not swimming in the full sense of the word. The child will begin to consciously stay on the water, breathe and hold his head a little later, and the skills acquired in the infant pool will definitely come in handy in this.

But at the age of up to a year, the task of the crumbs is to pump over their adaptive mechanisms, strengthen immunity and health. And along the way, solve a lot of problems that usually complicate the life of infants and their parents.

Baby swimming is, first of all, the improvement of the child, strengthening his immunity.

The baby moves in the water - and the water massages his skin, muscles, internal organs. He dives - and this improves the blood circulation of the brain, makes it develop more actively. This means that this baby will quickly begin to sit, talk, walk, and so on.

Babies are psychologically very comfortable in aquatic environment. Too calm children with a low tone, water invigorates and tones up, overexcited - soothes. Children normalize sleep, appetite, daily routine.

Swimming is a complete water massage, so effective that no additional massage procedures are needed. Unless, of course, some special massages are not prescribed for the baby for medical reasons.

Children who swim from birth are more balanced and calm, they have a good appetite, they sleep well, and generally follow the daily routine without any problems. They are much easier to tolerate diseases, because their immunity is more stable.

I can see this difference even in my own children. My two-year-old daughter, who started swimming as soon as her umbilical cord healed, is very different from her older son, who did not swim. She practically does not get sick, and if she catches something, she copes with the virus in a couple of days.

And in some conditions of the baby, swimming can be a real salvation.

Torticollis

This is a condition where the baby's head is turned to one side. Special exercises in water, the collar zone is strengthened, and the neck is aligned.

cerebral palsy

When due to disorders in some part of the brain, it is very difficult for a child to move some part of the body. And what does not move, does not develop and atrophies. Water keeps the baby as if in a state of weightlessness, it is much easier for him to move, and this greatly helps to maintain activity and develop the mobility of a paralyzed part of the body.

Chair problems

Swimming solves by activating the work of the intestines. When the child is horizontally in the water and moves in it, the water massages the tummy, both blood circulation and work improve. internal organs.

premature babies

It is especially important to stay in the water for, with a lack of weight. In the pool, such babies develop much more actively: the water does not restrict movement, the arms and legs move faster, and the child quickly catches up with their peers in development.

Baby swimming is, of course, not quite swimming. But the usual bathing in a home bath is definitely not a substitute.

Training should be regular, with a gradual increase in the load for the baby. Shaking it back and forth in some water is also good: massage, exposure to temperature, and so on. But this is not enough. We need special wiring, diving, which make the muscles, joints, and lungs of the baby work.

In the eyes of a mother, such treatment of her baby can look almost like extremism. And she may not dare to do it herself in a home bath - she is afraid to do something wrong.

Of course, if the mother understands what's what, she can learn the exercises that are suitable for the bath and practice with her baby at home. But kids are growing fast. Already in one and a half to two months it becomes difficult to engage in the bathroom. The child is active, pounding on the water with his arms and legs, the bath is wet, the mother is wet. It's time to go to the pool to the coach.

The pool has more space for active movements, more freedom. With a coach, the child gets used to a certain severity, it is set up that now he will work. Therefore, the results are noticeably better than in the bath.

If you are serious about swimming with your baby, it is better not to delay the pool. At 3-4 months, the instinct of self-preservation fades in babies when they hold their breath, plunging into the water. The task of the trainer is to translate the unconditioned reflex into a conditioned one.

If you start targeted training before three months, the baby will not even notice how this happened. If, however, the unconditioned reflex is allowed to fade, and swimming starts after 5-6 months, it will be quite difficult to teach the child to hold his breath.

Baby swimming is a job, first of all, for parents. In classes with a baby, regularity and system are extremely important. And adults always have some justifying circumstances: the child is in a bad mood, the child has snot, the weather is not very good, and so on.

The parent who will do this needs to rest: we walk, so we walk. The child may be out of mood, or sleep badly - we will reduce the training, or, conversely, increase it. But it must take place anyway.

If you interrupt the process, it will only be torment on both sides. Children, especially those that are older, very quickly forget everything, wean. Instead of training incrementally, after each break, you have to roll back to the start and get used to it again.

Another thing that parents need to accept: baby swimming is, first of all, hardening. Therefore, you can’t come, work out, and then pull a bunch of socks and hats on the child so that he runs away on the way home.

The baby pool should be an extension of the lifestyle that parents broadcast. Here proper nutrition, and walking, and sleeping, and barefoot on the floor at any time of the year. Then there will be a result.

Different parents come to the pool. There are those who are determined, those who are hardened themselves, swim. And there are those who hesitate, who are confused by some old attitudes. And here there is more work not with the child, but with the parent.

The main fear of mothers, and especially grandmothers, is water in their ears. Many people are afraid of otitis. And here you need to look at what fear is based on. There is this at the level of rumors: “I heard that there will be otitis media from water” - then we cut off these fears in the bud. with water in the ears are not connected.

If there is a real tendency to otitis, this problem needs to be addressed. You can put on a hat and never swim in your life. But this is a bad choice. And you can strengthen the body, raise immunity and get rid of otitis media once and for all.

Parents are scared: here, we swam, and sprinkled on us. We understand: this is a reaction to water, or something new was added in food, in clothes, in powder. We put aside swimming for a while, and when the skin clears up, we try again.

It is extremely rare to have a reaction to water, or chlorine in the water. Then, of course, classes should be stopped, or the pool should be changed. But in my experience, the resultant rash has always been a new food or an unfamiliar washing powder.

They are also afraid of colds: if they have snot, then we don’t go swimming. It is difficult to convince that if the nose is clogged, on the contrary, it starts to breathe after active movements in the water. And a cold after a workout passes faster.

This is confirmed by the practice of many conscious parents who bring children with both snot and cough. And the children recover in 2-3 days, where the rest will get sick all ten.

Sometimes parents worry that the baby will choke, that something will go wrong. But after a few sessions, when they see the result, these fears disappear.

In general, it’s better for a mother to mentally set herself up for swimming in advance, because the child subtly feels her mother’s emotional state, even if she is not nearby, but is sitting in the next room. If the mother is worried, then the child is tense, and it is more difficult for him to concentrate on training. Therefore, it is better for mom to tune in to the good, and go to rest while the baby swims.

There are special children's pools for infants at medical institutions and children's clinics. But the "specialty" of these pools does not mean that they have especially purified water, without chlorine, etc.

The baby does not need any ultra-purified water. The child's body very quickly adapts to any environmental factors. If a child from infancy swims in a regular pool, wets his ears, etc., he will not be afraid of these factors when he grows up, and the adaptive mechanisms will weaken.

Even at home, when we prepare a bath for a child, we wash it with ordinary soap or soda, without any disinfectants. No chamomile or string - ordinary tap water, unboiled.

My daughter didn't even have a small bath. We waited for the umbilical cord to heal, and immediately began to swim in the usual large bath, and at three weeks we already went to the pool.

Parental doubts about the purity of the water in the pool can be understood. But I can say for myself: when my daughter swims, she comes out of the pool with her stomach like a drum. She, in addition to floating, also sips this water. But this does not affect health in any way. And if so, then there is nothing to worry about. In children, the internal environment easily adapts to this water, and that's it, there are no problems.

Of course, it's great when it's specifically a children's pool, and no one else swims in it except children. But we, for example, have many group lessons when children swim with their parents. If people come to the common pool after taking a shower and observing all hygiene standards, then why not swim together?

Chapter:
Russian encyclopedia "MOTHER and CHILD"
From preparation for conception and pregnancy to 3 years of age of the child.
For the first time in Russian practice, everything that parents need is combined in a single encyclopedic section. The encyclopedia is divided into user-friendly thematic sections that allow you to quickly find the information you need.
This unique Encyclopedia for expectant mothers, prepared under the guidance of Academicians of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences G. M. Savelyeva and V. A. Tabolin, provides comprehensive information about conception, childbearing, caring for him, and the developmental activities of parents with their baby. The Encyclopedia carefully considers recommendations World Organization Health.
The encyclopedia helps to successfully cope with all the problems without exception that arise in the most crucial period of a child's life - from the moment of birth to three years.
How does pregnancy proceed, how to prepare for childbirth, what complications occur during breastfeeding, how to become beautiful and slim again after pregnancy, how much to walk with the baby, what to cook for him, why is the baby crying?
Thousands of tips and tricks to help you raise a healthy and happy child, answer any question you may have. Much attention is paid to the development of the child, which will help you avoid many mistakes.
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Properly performed massage has a beneficial effect on the directly treated areas of the body, and on the whole organism as a whole. This is because the skin is an extremely complex organ.

Massage not only affects the various structural layers, muscles, blood vessels, glandular apparatus of the skin, but also affects the central nervous system, with which the skin is connected through nerve endings, which are embedded in a huge number in its various layers.

Under the influence of massage, the child grows and develops better. It improves the metabolism in tissues, improves the regulation of hematopoiesis, increases blood circulation, improves tissue nutrition: the skin and muscles become elastic and elastic. The body's resistance to infections increases. Massage is extremely useful for prematurity and various diseases: for congenital disorders of the musculoskeletal system, malnutrition, rickets, pneumonia and other diseases.

Since massage has different physiological effects on the body, it is very important to choose the right massage techniques, methods of their application and dosage. Otherwise, massage can only bring harm. Therefore, before doing a massage, the mother must learn how to perform its techniques in a children's clinic and carry it out under the supervision of a pediatrician and a physiotherapist.

When massaging children, the following techniques are used: stroking, rubbing, superficial and deep kneading, tapping and vibration.

Stroking. Gentle stroking has a calming effect on the nervous system, promotes muscle relaxation in case of hypertonicity, which is characteristic of newborns, increases the tone of blood vessels, and improves the child's appetite.

The kid gains weight well, the functioning of the nervous system normalizes: a lethargic child becomes animated, active; excitable - more calm, he falls asleep faster, and the duration of sleep increases.

When performing this massage technique, the palmar or back surface of the hands slides over the child's body, touching him somewhat, as if caressing. The contact of the hand with the skin of the baby at the beginning and at the end of the reception should be so gentle that the child barely feels the touch, and the stroking does not cause redness of the skin. Stroking begins and ends each massage session.

Trituration. This technique is considered as a variant of stroking, however, it has its own characteristics and differs from stroking in the following ways: when rubbing, the massaging hand does not slide over the skin, but the skin moves along with the massaging hand; massage movements can be performed both along and against the flow of lymph and blood.

Rubbing has a positive effect not only on the skin, but also on the subcutaneous fat, and on the superficially located muscles. The mobility of tissues increases, scars and adhesions stretch when the skin adheres to the underlying tissues, blood flow to the tissues increases and, as a result, their nutrition improves, elasticity and contractility increase. Vigorous rubbing along the nerve trunks or in places where nerve endings exit to the surface of the body causes a decrease in nervous excitability.

Rubbing in progress palmar surface hands of one or both hands at the same time. With both hands, rubbing is carried out either separately - both hands move in opposite directions, or together - one brush lies on the other. Rubbing always precedes kneading.

Kneading. This is one of the most difficult massage techniques. It consists in grasping, lifting (pulling) and squeezing out tissues; capture and alternate squeezing of tissues; squeezing and chafing of tissues; shearing or stretching of tissues.

When kneading is stronger than when rubbing, muscle tone and their contractile function increase. This technique is considered as passive gymnastics for muscles. Therefore, it is widely used for their functional insufficiency (decreased tone). When kneading, the blood supply to the massaged area increases: reddening of the skin is observed, muscle nutrition improves, due to which their mass, strength, and contractility increase.

Kneading is especially useful if, for some reason, the child’s muscles are not sufficiently developed, it contributes to the formation correct posture and timely development of movements in rickets.

Kneading is done with one or both hands. When kneading with both hands, the technique is performed as follows: both hands are superimposed on the palmar surface, for example, on the thigh in such a way that the thumbs lie one at a time and the rest lie on the other side of the muscle shaft. Then, with fingers, grabbing the tissues on both sides of the thigh as deeply as possible, they squeeze and gradually squeeze them out, moving in a centripetal direction (toward the body).

When kneading with one hand, the same techniques apply. Massage movements at the same time resemble squeezing a sponge soaked in liquid. Reception is most often used when massaging the limbs.

They start with light surface movements and only later move on to deeper kneading of tissues. Massage is performed smoothly, rhythmically, without jerks and muscle twitching. Kneading should be carried out slowly: the slower it is done, the stronger its effect. After kneading, you need to perform stroking.

Vibration. The essence of the reception lies in the transfer of the massaged part of the body of oscillatory movements. The action of vibration is not limited only to the place of its application. It spreads deep inside and around the periphery, causing a variety of body responses. For example, vibration can enhance or restore lost deep reflexes, have a pronounced analgesic effect, improve muscle contractility and tissue nutrition.

When performing the reception, the masseur's hand, without breaking away from the massaged part of the body, produces various oscillatory movements, which must be performed strictly rhythmically. Vibration can be produced either stably - in one place, or labilely - along the massaged surface.

During continuous vibration, the massage therapist's hand and the massaged part of the body seem to be one whole. In the case of intermittent vibration, the massage therapist's hand, in contact with the massaged part of the body, moves away from it each time, as a result of which the vibrational movements become intermittent and take on the character of separate, successive pushes.

Both types of vibration can be performed by the palmar surface of the terminal phalanx of one, two, three or the last four fingers; ulnar edge of the palm; with the whole palm.

In infancy, vibration is used infrequently, mainly when massaging loose, overly plump babies. This causes a slight, rhythmic shaking of the child's body.

tapping. A series of short rhythmic blows is alternately applied with the back surface of first one, then two, then three and, finally, four fingers of both hands. Tapping improves blood circulation, muscle nutrition, and the activity of more deeply located internal organs. This massage technique is recommended only for well-fed children.

In addition to tricks classical massage acupressure is also used: they press with one or two fingers on certain reflex zones, while the fingers rotate. It is used both for weakened stretched muscles, and for increased muscle tone in order to relieve muscle tension.

At the same time, fast jerky and relatively strong pressure causes excitation and muscle tension. Slow, soft impacts on the same zones, first with an increase in pressure, vibration frequency, then a stop and subsequent weakening of the impact (without separation from the massaged area), cause a weakening of muscle tension in individual groups muscles.

massaged baby very light and gentle. During the massage of the arms and legs, they are given the position of greatest rest - a slight half-bending. When massaging the legs, jerks are avoided. kneecap, bypassing it from the outside and from below, do not massage the inner surface of the thighs, as it is extremely tender. When massaging the abdomen, you need to spare the liver area (right hypochondrium), while tapping the back - the kidney area (lower back).

Massage is the most effective method preparing the baby's motor apparatus for the future physical activity. However, as the formation motor functions child, this task is increasingly solved through independent movements.

Therefore, massage as a means of training should be used only up to 6 months of age. Hygienic and massotherapy justified at a later date.

Massage of newborns and infants must be combined with passive and passive-active gymnastics, which is described below.

Physical exercise have a beneficial effect not only on the activity of all organs and systems of the child, but also on his motor activity, and hence on psychomotor development.

Usually, gymnastics with children begins to be practiced at the age of 1.5–2 months. However, even in a newborn, motor activity can be stimulated different ways. Cold is considered the main of them, since at low temperatures muscle contractions keep the baby warm. Another way is to use the reflexes with which the baby is born and which are given to him to adapt to new living conditions.

complexes gymnastic exercises for full-term and healthy newborns, in which unconditioned reflexes are used and massage is carried out at the same time. Gymnastics classes are held every day at a convenient time for the family. The room in which the classes are held is well ventilated, the air temperature in it should not exceed 22 ° C.

Gymnastics begins 30 minutes before feeding or 45-60 minutes after it.

You can not do gymnastics with a child and give him a massage before a night's sleep.

Of great benefit are gymnastics in combination with massage and hardening procedures, especially for premature, physiologically immature, as well as children with certain developmental disabilities.

Many of these deviations, thanks to gymnastics and massage, can be corrected or disappear without a trace if classes with a child begin in the first weeks of his life. Otherwise, developmental deviations are aggravated, harming the health, physical and mental formation of the child.

For such kids, special complexes of therapeutic exercises have been developed. They are prescribed by a doctor. Before you start exercising with a child, you need to get advice from a pediatrician and a sports doctor, and if necessary, get trained in the physical education room of the clinic. Classes with the child are periodically supervised by a doctor.

In premature babies, under the influence of gymnastics, massage and hardening, the muscle tone, unconditioned reflexes are restored. Since the exercises are accompanied by air baths, thermoregulatory mechanisms are also trained, the resistance of the child's body to bacterial and viral infections increases.

Premature babies treated physical therapy, quickly catch up with their full-term peers not only in physical, but also in psycho-emotional development. They begin to smile, walk, follow moving objects earlier, which also indicates that their health is approaching normal.

TO physical education healthy premature babies start from 2-3 weeks of age, but only with the permission of a pediatrician and a sports doctor, who, taking into account the state of his body, development, age, body weight at birth, prescribe exercises and massage, and then control the mother.

Recommend to start therapeutic gymnastics with exercises based on unconditioned reflexes. On the one hand, this active exercise because the child himself performs them. On the other hand, these are sparing exercises compared to passive ones that adults do themselves.

Complexes of exercises for premature babies include positional treatment, therapeutic exercises, classical and acupressure. General requirements for gymnastic exercises are the same as for full-term children. However, the air temperature in the room should be higher - up to 24 ° C.

In the warm season, therapeutic exercises are done with an open window or window. Individual exercises, if advised by a doctor, are performed 2-3 times a day.

During classes, do not forget to encourage the baby with affectionate words, strokes, and encouragement. Remember that when you work with a newborn, you are already educating him. The success of the baby can largely depend on your efforts, patience, benevolence and tenderness.

The selection of gymnastic exercises and massage for full-term and premature babies and their dosing is carried out only by a doctor.

The beneficial effect of swimming on the health of newborns and infants became known at the end of 1971, when at one of the conferences of the Medical Committee of FINA - the International Federation of Swimmers - a group of researchers from Germany reported on the results of a 3-year swimming training for infants.

These results were so impressive that, over the next two decades, infant swimming became widespread throughout the world. At the same time, it was found that it is especially useful for premature and immature children, since it allows these babies to catch up and even overtake their full-term peers faster than usual.

The impact of swimming on the body of newborns and infants is not limited to hardening - in a home bath, you can easily adjust the temperature of the water and, gradually reducing it from lesson to lesson, increase the baby's resistance to colds.

Although the absence of disease in itself means a lot, because any pathology in early age inevitably leads to a delay in the development of the child, the benefits of swimming for him are associated primarily with the special properties of the aquatic environment.

Developing in the mother's body, the child is in the amniotic fluid. The influence of gravity forces on it is significantly weakened. The birth of a child is comparable only to the return to Earth of astronauts who have lived in zero gravity for a long time.

Like them, the force of gravity falls on the newborn, it literally chains him to the bed.

He moves awkwardly and with difficulty relative to his heavy head, which, like an anchor, is the center of his movements.

In water, the child becomes 7–8 times lighter than in the air (remember the law of Archimedes), he feels free again, the load on his skeletal muscles disappears, the baby gets the opportunity to move his arms and legs more freely, which means he learns to control them more quickly which is necessary for active acquaintance with the outside world.

First of all, therefore, "floating" newborns are ahead in development of "non-floating".

But even this beneficial effect of the aquatic environment on the child is not exhausted. In water, the baby experiences quite strong (up to several kilograms per 1 cm of skin), but uniform pressure on the surface of the body.

On the one hand, it improves peripheral blood circulation, which means it facilitates the work of the heart. On the other hand, increased, compared to the air environment, pressure on chest promotes a deeper exhalation, and therefore a deeper inhalation.

This provides good ventilation the entire surface of the lung tissue. In the lungs there is not a single corner that would not be washed by air.

While in bed, the child breathes shallowly, while only a small part of the lungs are actively working. Only it is cleaned by air. In the passive sections, the air stagnates, their tissue is seeded with microorganisms suspended in the air, among which there are also pathogens. In non-ventilated parts of the lungs, conditions are created for the development of such microbes, and hence for the occurrence of respiratory diseases.

When swimming, thanks to deep breathing pathogens are removed from the lungs. In addition, since the entire surface of the lung tissue works, the blood, all organs and tissues of the child receive more oxygen, metabolic processes in his body proceed more intensively.

We must not forget about the massaging effect of water on the child's body, which favorably affects his peripheral nervous system.

Repeatedly repeated exercises in the water are as important as hygienic gymnastics: they train and strengthen the cardiovascular, respiratory and digestive systems, the child's motor apparatus.

And of course, early swimming training teaches the baby not to be afraid of water, which in the future will help protect him from accidents on the river, sea, lake.

You can start swimming with a child from 2-3 weeks of age after consulting a pediatrician. Swimming children visit the doctor more often than usual.

When swimming, you must observe two mandatory conditions: consistency in the child's performance of various exercises and in changing the conditions for their implementation; gradual build up physical activity(an increase in the number of exercises in one session, the speed of their alternation) and in the complication of the training environment (depth, water temperature).

Some parents, when teaching a baby to swim, try to force things - so they want to quickly see their baby as a real swimmer. Most often, parental vanity hides behind such haste, and the only “achievement” with this method of teaching is the fear of water and aversion to swimming, which can remain in a child for life.

The purpose of swimming with a newborn and infant is not to educate a swimmer-record holder, but to strengthen the health of the child, his harmonious and fast development. During the first 12 months of life, your baby should learn to float on the water for half an hour, dive to a shallow depth and get various objects from the bottom of the pool (bath), swim underwater for 7-8 seconds, jump into the water in light clothing (shorts , T-shirt, socks, sandals) and stay on the water for 2-3 minutes.

In order to achieve these goals, it is necessary to conduct classes in such a way that the child experiences joy and pleasure from being in the water, interest in the tasks of an adult.

Swimming should cause the baby positive emotions.

When teaching a child, you need to be careful: avoid sudden movements, actions that are unexpected for him.

With the baby you need to affectionately talk, cheer and encourage him. And never show dissatisfaction, irritation and disappointment due to the fact that he does not immediately master this or that exercise.

Closely monitor the condition and behavior of the child - hypothermia, overheating, overwork can cause him to distrust water. The cause for fear can be severe irritation of the mucous membranes of the eyes and pain if the water is overchlorinated or soap gets into it.

At hand, the adult who conducts the lesson should always have a water thermometer. Usually the water temperature is measured at least 2 times during the session.

At the first signs of fatigue (lethargy, whims) or hypothermia (chills, goosebumps, bluish tint of the lips), classes should be stopped immediately. If the same symptoms appear the next day, it is better to take a break for 2-3 days.

Before each swimming lesson, an adult, if he will be in the bath with the child (this may be necessary in the first period of training), washes thoroughly with soap, washes and disinfects the bath and toys that will be used during the lesson, ventilates the bathroom.

Lessons are best done at the same time, preferably in the afternoon, 1.5-2 hours before evening feeding and not earlier than 1.5 hours after the last meal.

It is essential that the entire course is taught by one person.

After swimming, the child is usually somewhat agitated. Therefore, he needs to create conditions for complete rest.

Hardening is a system of procedures, under the influence of which the body's resistance to adverse environmental influences increases.

The physiological basis of hardening is that a person constantly and systematically (and these are the main principles of hardening) develop conditioned reflexes that provide better thermoregulation - maintaining a constant body temperature.

Unprepared for sudden changes in temperature, the body responds to them with a reaction such as an unconditioned reflex. For example, in response to cooling, the vessels located on the surface of the body dilate in order to warm the skin due to the greater blood flow to the skin. But this dramatically increases the heat transfer, which further cools the body.

A hardened organism, in response to a cooling signal received from thermoreceptors, immediately increases the production of heat. Skin vessels, however, dilate only a short time, increasing the flow of warm blood to the surface layers of the body, and then this heat is retained due to a sharp decrease in heat transfer - the skin vessels are reduced.

Hardening not only trains the thermoadaptive systems of the child's body. It also activates the activity of the immune system. Thanks to these two factors, hardening avoids many diseases, especially in physiologically immature newborns, in which the immune system is not yet sufficiently developed.

Thus, hardening contributes to the normal physical and mental development of the child. It is necessary to harden the baby from the first days of life - everyone agrees with this. However, there are diametrically opposed points of view on how to harden, and in particular during the neonatal period.

According to one of them, a newborn child is weak, requires careful treatment, and therefore it is possible to carry out special hardening measures 1.5–2 months after his birth, and then very carefully. And until that time, one should limit oneself to hardening episodes that arise in the process of caring for a child, and the creation of healthy living conditions for him.

What does it mean?

First of all, the flow of fresh air into the room where the baby lives. To do this, you need to open the window more often in winter and ventilate the room. In summer, it is better to keep the windows open so that not only Fresh air, but also the sun's rays, under the influence of which anti-rachitic vitamin D is produced in the child's body.

In addition, the sun's rays kill pathogens. Moderate air temperature is no less important - it should not be higher than 22 ° C for full-term babies.

Walks, air baths that the baby takes when changing diapers, changing clothes, preparing for bathing, washing and hygienic baths with a final pouring of cool water - all these are the first tempering procedures in a child's life that supporters of this point of view allow during the neonatal period.

But is such hardening enough to really increase the child's body's resistance to adverse influences, others ask. Is the newborn so defenseless in front of them? After all, the possibilities of its adaptive mechanisms are unusually high.

It cannot be otherwise. Without this, he would have died immediately after birth, like a fish thrown out of the water - the child spent 9 months of intrauterine life in completely different conditions.

The rate of adaptive reactions in newborns is also extremely high. The restructuring of the functioning of their body begins almost instantly - from the first cry, the first breath.

That is why a child without harm to health could be born in a reindeer team at 30–40 ° C frost, at 50 ° C heat in a Finnish or Russian bath, he endured bathing in an ice font and rubbing with snow. These are all the old customs that accompanied the birth of a person.

These customs were based on folk experience, according to which a short-term, but rather strong effect on a newborn of low temperatures has a beneficial effect on him - it seems to give an impetus to the body's defenses, after which the child develops well.

Here is what the famous doctor V. N. Zhuk wrote in the past: “Both a weak and strong child, baptized in winter in water directly from a well (plus 8 degrees Réaumur, plus 10 degrees Celsius. - Ed.), Develops very quickly and almost immediately takes on a special, pleasant, cheerful, strong look ... fast dive in cold water, it definitely enhances all metabolic processes ... The skin turns red and is pleasant to look at: the child looks fuller, rosier, rounder, sucks harder and greedily, falls asleep soon, after baptism does not scream, lies calmly and looks. After 4-6 weeks, a weak child is unrecognizable.

It has been established that high rates of adaptation are preserved in the child throughout the entire neonatal period, since at this time the baby adapts to new living conditions. And then, if the adaptive mechanisms are not trained, their capabilities quickly decrease ... as unnecessary, since the baby is in comfortable conditions.

Parents protect him from the adverse effects of the external environment warm clothes which helps for the time being. Because weakening, reducing the adaptive systems of the body to a low level of activity makes the child defenseless even before a slight draft and cooling.

It turns out that at a time when the child's adaptation system works most effectively, he is practically not tempered. And it is recommended to start careful hardening after the speed of its adaptive processes has begun to decline, when the body's capabilities have already been largely lost and they need to be restored.

Let us name two more serious shortcomings in this system of "careful" hardening of children.

Firstly, temperature differences during such hardening are much less than those that a child encounters in Everyday life. And even if only for this reason, they cannot give a hardening effect. Even when the baby is swaddled, the temperature difference is 10-12°C, while the guidelines recommend lowering the temperature of the water during hardening by 0.5-1°C in 3-6 days.

Secondly, the hardening effect on this system is short-term and incomparable with the duration of the effect of comfortable conditions on the body. As B.P. Nikitin writes, “5-6 minutes are allotted for hardening, and for pampering ... the remaining 1434 minutes every day.”

According to Yu. N. Chusov, the author of a number of books on hardening, for a good effect, it is not enough just to systematically and gradually carry out hardening procedures - such effects must be quite intense and long-lasting.

Proponents of a different point of view on hardening believe that it is necessary to use the unique opportunities that nature gave him during the neonatal period to increase the resistance of the child's body; take as a basis not hardening procedures, but such a way of life of the child, which would ensure the constant work of the adaptive systems of his body.

What does it look like in practice?

Here is how B. P. Nikitin writes:

“The child is naked or in one vest all the time until he sleeps or when his mother feeds him. He freely moves his arms and legs, and we are not afraid if his heels turn blue. Ilya Arkadyevich Arshavsky says that this is the first thermoadaptive reaction of the baby to the cold. Rejoice, parents, that she works for him - cold legs give off less heat, the body's thermal balance is restored.

In the first two or three days, the baby may sometimes hiccup, but this is also a process of getting used to the new thermal regime. The hiccups go away on their own and stop when the baby is wrapped up for sleep in the room in one or two diapers. It is better for him to fall asleep with warm legs. For this, mom needs to take her feet in her warm hands or even breathe on them...

We try to keep the temperature in the room at 17–19°C. If the baby is naked in it, then:
- his muscle tone is increased, that is, they are tense in order to generate more heat (apparently, this is the main way of warming up), and the muscles develop at the same time;
- coolness always invigorates and makes movements especially pleasant;
- diapers and clothes do not restrict movement;
- the body's thermoregulators come into operation and transfer the entire body's defense system to another mode.

It is only important to remember: if the baby stops moving, relaxes, it means that he needs to be dressed or wrapped in a diaper - to warm him up.

Thus, the duration of the hardening procedure in this case is determined by the child himself, or rather, his parents by changing the state of the baby. At first, in a physiologically immature infant, this procedure can take only 5–10 seconds, and in a mature one, sometimes 60 seconds at once.

As the child gets used to it, the duration of the air bath increases, and soon the baby spends the entire period of wakefulness either naked or in one vest. Such children are practically not susceptible to colds.

Such a way of life of a child is extremely useful for his psychomotor development.

The baby quickly masters various movements, begins to sit down, get up in the crib, crawl earlier ...

It also has a beneficial effect on the condition of the skin of the baby, which is especially important for immature children with a tendency to allergic diseases, in particular diathesis: “... the baby's skin in such conditions does not need either frequent washing or daily bathing and without any lubrication and powders remains clean, healthy and velvety to the touch.

The diaper rash, rash, redness he received in the maternity hospital disappeared in just a few days and did not appear again.

A good hardening effect is exerted by the use cold water from the tap for washing the child (water is collected in the palm of your hand).

What gives a child swimming? Experts are unanimous in their opinion: for a child, nothing is more useful than swimming. Systematic water activities evoke positive emotions in children, help strengthen the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, the musculoskeletal system, promote early development, stimulate metabolic processes, strengthen nervous system, sleep becomes stronger, appetite improves, the general tone of the body increases, endurance increases. Water is especially useful for premature babies: the body in it loses 9/10 of its weight and spends almost no energy on overcoming gravity. Due to this, babies quickly catch up with their "land" peers who were born with normal weight.Professionals and parents use swimming as a means of hardening children from an early age: the child is gradually accustomed to cool water and his body becomes more resistant to infections. Moreover, this is a long-term effect - after all, the foundation of health is laid in the first year of life.
For many parents, bathing newborns and in general water activities with babies - a tricky business. It happens that it is very difficult to teach a child not to be afraid of water, to move calmly in it, to swim and dive. Therefore, it is important to immediately contact a professional in this field and lay the right foundation swimming techniques.Before birth, the baby is in the amniotic fluid, i.e. actually in the aquatic environment, so the newborn baby does not know what the fear of water is. For this reason, it is important to start teaching your baby to swim as soon as possible after birth - he will feel comfortable and natural in the water. Without fixing, this swimming reflex fades by three months and bathing will become a new acquaintance with water for the child.In the home bath, you can start practicing from the first days of a child's life. And the optimal time to start exercising in the pool is the age of 3-4 months.

For preschoolers, the leading activity is the game. Through the game, the child acquires the necessary knowledge, skills and abilities. All of this also applies to swimming lessons for preschoolers . Games and entertainment in the water contribute to the education of children's courage, determination, self-confidence, initiative, so we turn all activities with preschoolers into one big game. IN preschool age the task of mastering a strong swimming technique by a child is not set. It is important that he learns the elements of technique, the correct general pattern of movements, on the basis of which the swimming skill will develop and improve. The main goal of teaching swimming to preschoolers is to promote their recovery, hardening, to form the habit of doing physical education and sports, as well as mastering the elementary swimming technique with the main styles (crawl, breaststroke, butterfly, backstroke).

For children different ages I offer various forms of swimming training:

kids 1- 4 months- baby swimming in the bathroom
Together with you and your baby, we will master the basic supports and techniques of swimming, diving techniques, we will do aqua gymnastics and temper ourselves. Swimming is recommended after a small gymnastics complex: we prepare the baby's muscles and joints for training in the water. Therefore, the complex of such a lesson includes:
- gymnastics consisting of passive-active exercises on the table;
- gymnastics on fitball;
- dynamic gymnastics (at the request of parents)
- actually swimming in the bathroom
The lesson lasts 35-40 minutes.The cost is 1200 rubles.

Children from 3 months to 3 years - swimming in the pool (parent + child)
Classes are held in groups of 7-10 people in a playful way, very fun and interesting!
The main goals of the early swimming course: to teach kids not to be afraid of water; teach them swimming and diving skills; development of coordination of movements; development of flexibility and ability to relax; the formation of the habit of joint, healthy and active pastime of children and parents.
The lesson consists of several parts:
- greetings and acquaintances;
- warm-ups (aqua gymnastics, elements of dynamic gymnastics);
- swimming on the stomach and on the back;
- exercises at the side;
- diving, swimming under water, jumping from the side;

Dancing to children's music;

We swim using rings, boards, noodles, circles and other floating devices and of course we play games :-)

Parents: bathing suit, shoes with rubber soles, cap, towel.

Children: special swim shorts (or special swim diapers); for children who can walk - shoes with rubberized soles, a towel; children over 2 years old - hat.

Required documents:

Medical certificate for visiting the pool for the parent (tests for worm eggs, enterobiasis, certificate from a dermatologist);

Medical certificate for visiting the pool for a child (tests for eggs, worms and enterobiasis (for children over 1 year old), certificate from a pediatrician)

Children 3 to 7 years old - swimming in the pool (children without parents)

Classes are held in groups of 10-12 people; in a playful way, we will get used to water, do aqua gymnastics, perform exercises to learn easier ways of swimming with basic styles, learn to dive and swim under water, and engage in various water equipment.

What you need to have for classes:

Swim shorts or a swimsuit, shoes with rubber soles, a towel, a swimming cap, swimming goggles (not from the first lesson).

Required documents:

Medical certificate from a pediatrician with tests for worm eggs and enterobiasis.

Place and time of classes:

Base in DGP No. 150 (branch 1) prospect 40 years of October, 25 (metro station Lublino)

Description of the pool: Length 7 m, Width 3 meters, Depth 90-120 cm; water temperature 32 degrees

Schedule:

Tuesday 17.00 - 17.45 (3 months - 1.5 years)

17.45 - 18.30 (1.5 - 3 years)

Base in DGP No. 150 (branch 3) st. Tsimlyanskaya d. 22 (metro station Lublino)

Schedule:

HThursday 17.00 - 17.45 (3 months - 1.5 years)

17.45 - 18.30 (1.5 years - 3 years)

18.30 - 19.10 (individual lesson)

Base in DGP No. 150 Bratislavskaya st., 1 (metro station Bratislavskaya)

Description of the pool: Length 12 m, Width 5 m, Depth 80-130 cm; water temperature 30 degrees

Schedule:

Tuesday 17.20 - 18.00 (private lesson)

18.00 - 18.45 (3 -4 years)

Friday17.20 - 18.00 (individual lesson)

18.00 - 18.45 (3 - 4 years old)

18.45 - 19.30 (individual lesson)

The cost of classes in the polyclinic No. 150:

Child without a parent:

Single visit 500 rubles

Payment for classes is made in the department of paid services of the polyclinic.

Base in DGP No. 148Belorechenskaya st., 26 building 1 (metro station Lyublino, Bratislavskaya)

Description of the pool: D length 5 m, width 12 m, depth 90-120 cm; water temperature 32 degrees

Schedule:

Wednesday 16.20 - 17.00 (private lesson)

17.00 - 17.45 (3 months - 3 years)

17.45 - 18.30 (3 - 4 years old)

18.30 - 19.15 (5 - 7 years old)

Saturday 10.00 - 10.40 (3 months - 1.5 years)

10.45 - 11.30 (3 - 4 years)

11.30 - 12.15 (1.5 years - 3 years)

12.15 - 13.00 (5 - 7 years old)

13.00 - 13.40 (individual lesson)

base in DGP No. 148 (branch 2) Perervinsky blvd., 18 building 1 (metro station Bratislavskaya, Maryino)

Description of the pool: Dlength 5 m, width 15 m, depth 120-150 cm; water temperature 30 degrees

Tuesday 11.30 - 12.15 (3 months - 3 years)

Thursday 11.30 - 12.15 (3 months - 3 years)

12.20 - 13.00 (individual lesson)

The cost of classes in DGP No. 148:

Parent + child:

Single visit - 800 rubles

Flexible subscription (for 5 lessons) - 3500 rubles (700 rubles / lesson; there is the possibility of transferring classes: subscription valid for two months from the date of purchase; Class rescheduling must be reported no later than 3 hours before the start of the class. )

Hard subscription (for 5 lessons) - 3000 rubles (600 rubles / lesson; without the possibility of transferring classes)

Flexible subscription (for 10 lessons) - 6000 rubles (600 rubles / lesson; there is the possibility of transferring classes: subscription valid for three months from the date of purchase; Class rescheduling must be reported at least 3 hours prior to class start.

Hard subscription (for 10 lessons) - 5000 rubles (500 rubles / lesson; without the possibility of transferring classes)

Child without parents:

Single visit 500 rubles

Subscription for 4 visits per month 1600 rubles

Subscription for 8 visits per month 2800 rubles

Subscriptions to the "child without parents" group are purchased for a calendar month from the 1st to the 1st day.

Individual lesson 1500 rubles

Payment for classes is made in the department of paid services of the polyclinic by bank transfer.

Simple exercises for swimming.

In anticipation of mass trips to water bodies, I will tell you a few simple water safety rules and several exercises that you can do with your child in the water to help him learn to swim.

Simple rules for being near water.

1. never don't force a child to enter the water by force (throw or lower him into the water against his will), - in this way you will only scare the child away from the water. The time will come and the child himself will go into the water;
2. never do not leave the child unattended in water. NEVER. Even if the child keeps well on the water and knows how to swim, even if it seems to you that the pond is shallow, or even if your child is wearing armlets / circle, or even if you need to move away literally for “a couple of minutes”. Simply NEVER;
3. it is not advisable for the child to enter the water immediately after a meal or sweaty;
4. explain to the child what he should get out of the water as soon as he feels that he is freezing, that after he warms up he will immediately continue to bathe; it is necessary to thoroughly rub the child with a towel after bathing;
5. explain to the child that he should swim only in presence of adults those who can swim, towards the coast or along the coast;
6. remember that drowning man does not wave its arms out of the water and does not cry for help, but frantically splashes and flounders in the water, periodically going under water and returning to the surface;
7. tell the child that if he feels that is “tired” in the water and can no longer swim, he must lie back on the water and rest - this is one of the most important skills in the water and you must definitely teach this to the child;
8. explain to the child that he should not apply false alarms for help, false calls for help in the water are unacceptable;
9. explain to the child that he should always pre-estimate the distance to the bottom before jumping; What jump into the water can be dangerous because you can hit your head / feet on the bottom and injure your spine; that in the reservoir at the bottom there may be various sharp and hard objects that are not visible from above;
10. if the child will swim in cool water, then it is better to do it on the shore first row simple exercises to warm up;
11. if the child swims in the pool, then you need wash up BEFORE the pool (to wash off the dirt) and AFTER the pool (to wash off the chlorinated pool water).

However, of course, the most the best way to protect a child when bathing is to teach him to swim. Swimming is very beneficial for respiratory system, for the heart, muscles and bones, hardens, develops dexterity and strength, delivers a lot of pleasure.

How to start learning to swim?

The steps are like this:

1. familiarity with water and not be afraid of water: let the child just walks on the bottom towards the coast;
2. learn stay underwater: it is necessary to teach the child to go down under water and hold his breath / release bubbles under water; with closed/open eyes; you can offer the child to hang under water clasping his knees; you can collect heavy objects from the bottom;
3. learn float taking air into the lungs; there are two exercises (face up and face down):
   • "Starfish"- the most important skill on the water: you need to lie on the water face up (on your back). This is an exercise that can be taught to a child at any, even the earliest age: at first supporting the child under the head, then gradually loosening the arm;

• Older children can try to explain to draw air into the lungs to facilitate the task;
• an older child can be offered to try to learn how to do this exercise without your help: from a standing position, stretch your arms up and lean back (toward the coast), push off from the bottom, lie with your back on the water and slide on the water (sliding is easier than just lying down); the head should be pressed; try to keep the body horizontally elongated; swim until the legs start to go down;
• when the child learns to lie on the water, you can invite him to swing his legs and arms parallel to the bottom;
  • "star": the same exercise as the previous one, but face down; it is more complex and needs to be learned to do only after the child learns to hold his breath well under water; you can also do it in two ways - either you support the child under the chin, or the child tries to glide through the water towards the shore by taking air into the lungs from a standing position;

1. learn move your feet correctly on water (first “crawl”, then “breaststroke”): first on land, then holding on to the side of the pool / near the reservoir, then in the water (hold by the parent or by the board / swimming dumbbells);
2. learn move your arms correctly on water (either “crawl” or “breaststroke” - as it is more convenient for the child): first on land, then with the help of a parent who holds the child by the legs or you can put a long foam “sausage” under the chest;
3. simultaneous movements of arms and legs in water with breath holding for the entire duration of swimming;
4. correct breath control during the simultaneous movement of the arms and legs.

I think that if it is possible to constantly be near the child in the water, then it is better not to put on sleeves on him, but to try to learn how to keep on the water on your own, especially if the child is over 3-4 years old. If the child knows how to swim well in armlets, then you can gradually inflate them less and less so that the child gradually begins to feel his body in the water.

In addition, there are other devices for learning to swim: for example, a circle in which they put a child like in panties is also sometimes effective, especially if the child is afraid to swim.

Babies under the age of one month can be taught to dive and swim from birth by using and reinforcing the breath-holding reflex that all newborns have. How exactly to do this and where to start I wrote earlier, here.

Due to some anatomical features of the child's body and a certain head-to-body ratio most children can't swim above the water surface at the age of 3-4 years.

From my personal experience I will say that my son and I went to swim in a special children's pool from the age of 1 month. For three years we dived twice a week, jumped into the water, collected toys from the bottom, blew bubbles, rowed with our feet, swam with a board, collected balls in the water, glued pictures to the wall, etc. In short, I spent a LOT of time and effort on this. Then I gave up, stopped taking him to classes, bought a subscription to a fitness club and he splashed as much as he wanted in any pool - for children or for adults. Now my son is 4.5 years old. He loves to swim and always has. He never worked with a coach due to his attachment to me and my unwillingness to rape a child (it seemed to me that the main thing that our classes should give is not the ability to swim, but love for water), but he constantly swam - sometimes with a board, sometimes with dumbbells, then just dived and jumped. He did not like our forced diving at an early age, but now he loves to dive very much. He moves well under water, and above water with the help of a plank or dumbbells (he does not like armlets). But he only recently (from about 4 years old only!) began to succeed in swimming above the water on his own. From my point of view, an incredible amount of effort has been spent for such a meager result. But he is a very dexterous and developed guy - maybe thanks to swimming as well? I didn't have the strength to go swimming with my daughter. I am more than sure that by the age of 4.5 they will have approximately the same level of swimming skills, but we will find out about this in 3.5 years -)))