My kids are headed to summer camp once school gets out, and our rec center offers swim lessons during the day for each child. At first, I thought “Oh, wonderful! I can save a little time and money and put our swim lessons on pause during the summer.” Well, last year I (of course) forgot to put the lessons we take at Goldfish Swim School on hold and was incredibly thankful for my forgetfulness (for once). Water is an element that needs to be respected, and there are some very specific rules that we have as a family.
Swim lessons at my children’s camp is more play-based and supplemental. Don’t get me wrong, they LOVE splashing and playing games with their friends, but it isn’t close to the concrete skills that they learn and have reinforced during dedicated instruction time. Also, water safety is about much more than just the pool- my parents live on a lake, and I need to make sure they understand the fact that any body of water can be potentially dangerous. Therefore, we need to create rules that apply in as close to every situation as possible.
Peace of mind and child safety is more important to me than saving a few bucks or an hour a week by skipping swim class.
Here are my tips to keep your family safe around water:
- Stay in swim school! Yes, it might seem redundant, but the ability to swim is a life skill that is priceless.
- Have a weekly check-in with an instructor on your child’s progress. Are they able to float on their back for 5 minutes? Do they have difficulty getting out of the pool on their own?
- Re-inforce and practice safety skills with your children.
- Spend dedicated instruction time without the use of flotation devices, which provide a false sense of security.
- Create a set of family swim rules, and review them EACH TIME they go into the water for play.
- Get CPR certified, and include your children in the reasons why you are doing this.
- Ensure proper breath control is discussed and taught.
- Recognize the signs of drowning and review with your children.
- Don’t impart fear of the water, but teach your children to respect it.
Speaking of family rules, here is the set that we created for our household, feel free to grab them for yourself:
Enjoy the water this summer, and ensure your kids are as safe as possible by keeping them enrolled in an amazing swim school like Goldfish! Find a location nearest you here.
Cheers to water slides, belly flops and underwater handstands!
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post on behalf of Goldfish Swim School. All opinions are honest and my own as always.
