training intensity

Question
Hi, I am a PE teacher at an international school in Kenya. Our junior swim team age 6 - 11yrs old, are training 5 times a week, which in my opinion leaves them very little time to engage in other activities such as other sports, art , music or drama. I feel that a lot of pressure is put on them, especially from the parents to do this. I was hoping to find some answers on this site to support my idea that young children should be encouraged to engage with as many different activities as possible when they are young. I was therefore amazed when you have suggested in some of your answers that it is reasonable for young children to be training up to 10 hours a week!! Is this an American thing? Is any consideration given to the emotional or social impact of such a programme or the desire to build well rounded human beings?

Answer
Hi--
Sorry it has taken so long to get back to you.  No, this isn't an American thing.  I feel that starting at about 10 or 11 it is important for swimmers to train 5 days a week.  They have plenty of opportunity for socialization(there's a lot of that at practice) and other pursuits, if they are only working out an hour and a half per day which is plenty for that age group.  It is important for the parents to understand that they shouldn't pressure their kids into doing something they don't enjoy.  It can ruin the experience if the kids aren't having fun.  Personally when I was that age, I was in the school band(which I did all through high school, while swimming 2 1/2 hours a day), kept up with my studies and still had time for my freinds outside of swimming.  For a swimmer to be really successful the training hours are mandatory.  It definately teaches time management for them to be involved in more than one activity.  It is possible to be involved in more than one activity at the same time and to be successful at each.  90% of swimmers in America participate in multiple activities and turn out to be very successful,socially, emotionally and educationally.
Hope this helps,
George