During the summer months, children have more opportunities to be near large bodies of water (i.e. swimming pools, lakes, rivers, ponds, creeks, etc.). Children ages birth to four years are more prone to be in an unsafe situation regarding water. It is important to identify ways to keep children safe through determining water safety methods. As parents, there are many things we can do to achieve this.
Water Safety Tips
Listed below are several water safety tips that can help children stay safe:
- Always be near your child (for younger children you need to be with them, but for older children they should be close enough to you so you can help if needed)
- For children ages 3 and older, sign them up for swim lessons (that will provide instruction at their level)
- When you swim at a beach, make sure that a lifeguard is present
- When your family is on a boat (i.e. motorboat, canoe, rowboat, etc.), make sure that everyone is wearing life jackets
- Younger children should stay in shallow water with you, whereas older children can go into deeper water IF they have the proper swimming training to do so
- If you are swimming at a beach, make sure to know where the shallow water is and where it switches to deeper water (do not let your child swim past a boundary developed by buoys)
- Do not allow children to dive into shallow water (if out in a lake/river with a dock, do not let your child dive unless you know it has a depth of 10 feet or more)
- Take a CPR class
- Have a plan set-up in case their is an emergency (i.e. have a cellphone and a list of emergency phone numbers, especially if you are going to the lake, river, etc.)
The water safety tips listed above can provide parents ideas and reminders when heading out to the local community pool, river, or lake this summer. It will also allow us to be proactive and take measures to keep our children safe.
