This groundbreaking text presents findings from the first comprehensive international study examining developmental benefits of swimming lessons for children under five.

Robyn Jorgensen's research reveals that quality swimming programs benefit young children's development across multiple areas, demonstrating early aquatic education's impact on development beyond traditional water safety and swimming instruction. Using Bourdieu's framework of capital and drawing on the Australian context as a case study, the author documents remarkable gains across cognitive, linguistic, social and physical development, with participating children achieving developmental milestones up to 18 months ahead of international benchmarks. The research measures these significant outcomes while also examining the critical environmental factors that produce such results, including specific teaching practices, program quality indicators, and swim school characteristics that distinguish effective early aquatic education from basic swimming instruction. As well as demonstrating where gains occur, the book explores why quality swimming environments enable young children to flourish across developmental domains.

A must-read for swimming industry professionals seeking evidence-based insights for their program development, this important book will also interest early childhood educators, policymakers addressing pre-school educational gaps, and researchers across education, sport and child development.

Robyn Jorgensen is an Emeritus Professor at the University of Canberra, Australia. She has worked in the field of education and equity, with a particular focus on mathematics education and qualitative research. She was the recipient of 12 Australian Research Council grants, is widely published and has a strong international reputation in education. The Early Years Swim study that Robyn conducted has had considerable impact in the international swim industry and resulted in her induction into the Australian Swim School Hall of Fame in recognition of her contribution.