At the Childhood Drowning Prevention Foundation, we are dedicated to preventing and eradicating childhood drowning, the #1 cause of death for kids under the age of 5.
Here is some basic information on what you need to know when enrolling your child in swim lessons:
1) Start your child in swim lessons early! As long as their umbilical cord has healed, they can start learning basic skills to save their life and will have a greater respect for the water as they get older.
2) If your child is crying during swim lessons or doesn’t like swim lessons, it’s okay. You are NOT harming your child. This is a new environment they are in and a new skill they are learning, and they will adjust. And eventually, they WILL love the water!
3) Ensure your child is learning the 8 Basic Water Safety Skills: Eyes In/Submersion, Gliding, Back Float, Rolling Over, Kicking, U-Turns, Getting in the Pool, and Getting Out of the Pool. These put together will allow them to do Swim-Float-Swim, which is what will be necessary to know for them to save their life in a water emergency.
4) Only enroll your child in private, 1:1 swim lessons – NO group lessons. Group lessons are unsafe if your child has not learned how to swim and save their life yet.
5) Make sure your child’s instructor is focusing on MASTERY of the 8 Basic Water Safety Skills and Swim-Float-Swim. You want these skills to be second nature to your child, where they don’t think about doing them – they just do them.
6) Make sure your child’s instructor does not teach or allow doggy paddling or vertical swimming. Only horizontal swimming, aka Swim-Float-Swim.
7) Ensure that your child’s instructor does a Safety Test with your child once they have mastered the 8 Basic Water Safety Skills and Swim-Float-Swim. If they do not incorporate this in their program, they do not have your child’s ultimate safety at the forefront of their minds. SAFETY TESTS SAVE LIVES!
If you have more questions or would like more information on water safety, drowning prevention or our programs, please reach out: (909) 273-9680 tenaya@childhooddrowningpreventionfoundation.org
