Water Safety For Your Kids

Whether you’re a teacher at a camp or a parent with their kids, water safety is extremely important.

Heading to the beach or the pool in summer is a common activity, but don’t let that make you complacent. Water is always changing, and kids are always changing, so you have to keep your guard up when children are in the water.

The dangers of the water in a pool and the ocean can be similar, but there are some differences. We’ve broken it down into two separate categories so you’re ready no matter where you are.

Pool Safety:

~ Don’t leave children unattended. This is particular true for younger kids. If you need to go to the bathroom, take them with. Make sure you are in the water with them or that you can see them from wherever you are sitting. It can be easy in a small pool to trust the lifeguard, but you need to keep an eye on your own children. You know them, and you’re going to know right away if something is wrong.

~ Make sure children can swim at an appropriate level. In most pools children have to pass a swim test to go into deeper water, but even so, ensure your children’s swimming skills are up to par. If they aren’t strong swimmers enroll them in a class. The better they can swim, the less likely an accident is.

~ Teach your children not to swim around drains. Goggle straps, swimsuits, and hair can all get stuck in drains, which can mean big problems for your kids. It’s not as if your kids have to stay on the other side of the pool, but tell them not to dive and play right by a drain.

~ Ensure children practice safety themselves. While you can do everything you can to keep your children safe, they need to practice safety themselves. They need to understand their swimming skills, pool depths, and general safety practices. Once they know how to be safe, both the child and the adult are keeping safety in mind.

~ Make sure kids keep an eye on the sky. It’s easy for kids to get distracted by their fun time in the pool and forget about the weather. When clouds start to roll in, it’s time to be cautious. If there’s rain, or even thunder in the distance, it’s time to get out. If the clouds look bad enough it is important to get out of the water even with those warning signs, whether the other kids get out of the pool or not.

Ocean Safety:

~ Teach children how to swim in the surf. The surf is very different from a static swimming pool. In fact, taking kids to a wave pool is a good way to start. Children should never turn their back on the ocean, because waves can take them by surprise easily. They should be able to swim over waves without getting caught in the current.

~ Always swim on a beach with a lifeguard. It’s not like a pool, where it is easy to get to your child. In the ocean, the water is much different and can change at any moment. Lifeguards are trained to deal with this type of water, so only swim at beaches that do have lifeguards on duty.

~ Don’t let children swim alone. Whether you are in the water or another child is there with them, no one, especially children, should ever swim alone in the ocean. Always make sure your child has a swim buddy to keep an eye on them.

~ Watch the weather. The weather on beaches can change rapidly, especially in warmer climates where thunderstorms can be very common. Even if the clouds are in the distance, it is time to get out of the water. Lightning isn’t the only problem, but wind can stir up the water and make swimming even more difficult.

~ Teach kids to keep away from marine life. Jellyfish, while they look fun, are dangerous. Other plants and animals can also pose dangers. Tell your kids to stay away from plants and animals in the water for their own safety.

~ Keep away from piers. Not only are the waters more dangerous around here, but sharks are more drawn towards these piers. While shark attacks are rare, it’s better to be safe and keep kids away. Plus piers have more people, often more people fishing, which means fishing lines and fishing nets.

~ Always check the water conditions before swimming. You can find these online, by the flags on the beach, or from the lifeguard. If the water conditions make you wary, trust your instincts and keep yourself and the kids out of the water for the day.

Teach kids about rip currents. Rip currents pull you farther from shore and farther into the ocean. This is responsible for many of the deaths at beaches. Kids need to know how to deal with these.

·        Stay calm and don’t fight against the current.

·        Swim parallel to the shore until you’ve made it out of the rip current.

·        Once free, turn and swim back to shore.

·        If you get too tired, float or tread water.

·        If you can’t make it back to shore, signal for a lifeguard.