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Learning to swim and how to stay safe in, on, and around the water is a life skill that all children should know. One of the best ways children learn to swim is by participating in swim lessons and can begin learning as young as 6-months-old. According to the National Institute of Health, formal swim lessons reduces the risk of drowning by 88%. When you are considering signing your little one up for swim lessons, ask yourself these three questions! What is your little one's experience with the water? When thinking about your little one's experience in the water, think about bath time or your trips to the beach, consider how your little one reacted when feeling the water. Did they smile and laugh? Did they start to cry or shiver? Did they hesitate to stick a toe in or did they start splashing immediately? Was their first experience indoors or outside? Was it a hot summer day or a little breezy? Your little one's reaction to the water gives us so much information and will help you determine which type of swim lesson would be best to start your little one. Which type of class would your little one learn best in? Teach America To Swim offers three types of swim lessons to meet the needs of all our swimmers and their families. We offer group, semi-private, and private lessons. Group Lessons (Up to 10 swimmers) Group lessons are a great way for swimmers to learn water safety skills with a group of peers who are at a similar swimming ability. Lessons are grouped primarily based on swimming ability with few age restrictions. Group classes are great for swimmers who are comfortable in the water and want to learn to swim during summer camp or with friends. Semi-Private (Up to 4 swimmers) Semi-private lessons are perfect for swimmers who benefit from more one-on-one time with an instructor while still exploring the aquatic environment and learning water safety with their peers. Semi-private classes are great for swimmers who are a little hesitant about the water and are willing to try something new. Private (1-2 swimmers) Private lessons include one-on-one swimming and water safety instruction. We strongly recommend private lessons for infants, toddlers, and swimmers who may have a fear of the water. Which swim level is best for your little one? American Red Cross swim lessons are designed to teach swimmers skills in a logical progression that is mentally and physically developmentally appropriate for the swimmer. Every swimmer progresses with these skills at different rates and also comes to swim lessons with different levels of experience with the water. To help our families determine which level of swim lessons would be best for their swimmer, we've created a questionnaire that parents could use as a guide to determine which level would be a good starting place for their little one. To view our questionnaire, click here! Before signing your little one up for swim lessons, it's important to reflect on where your little is currently at with their comfort and skill level in the water. By taking the time to reflect on these things, you'll be able to determine the best type of lesson and starting point to set your little one up for success! Considering swim lessons for your children?
Click the button below to view our swim schedule. We can't wait to support you and your swimmers in building safe water habits!
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Teaching your child how to swim is an investment in time and resources. Yet it is one of the most important life skills anyone can learn. Did you know that skills like getting out of the water, blowing bubbles, and floating set the foundation for safe water habits? Swimming lessons not only teach our little ones how to swim but also teaches them how to build safe water habits that will last a lifetime. There are so many skills our swimmers practice in one lesson. At Teach America To Swim, we want our swimmers and their families to get the most out of swim lessons! Check out these top three tips you can do as a parent to make the most out of swim lessons and support your little one through their learning process! Attend Every Lesson Attending each lesson ensures that your swimmers are learning all skills in a logical sequence. Missing a class can sometimes be confusing for swimmers as they may miss a step in the progression. We understand that our swimmers get sick and sometimes important family events cannot be rescheduled. If this happens, don't worry! We got you! We offer one make-up class per session with six or more lessons. Check-in with your Instructor! Your swim instructors are here to support your swimmer in learning safe water skills and habits. Learning water safety is a collaborative effort between instructors and families! Checking in with your instructor gives you as a parent insight into your swimmer's progress and how you can support them at home. There are two essential times to check in with your swim instructor:
Question to ask at the end of a lesson:
Questions to ask at the end of the session:
Model safe water habits & talk to your swimmer about lessons! As a parent, you are your swimmer's first teacher. Remember that your swimmer learns what to do and what not to do by copying your behavior. When near the water with your swimmer, remember to model safe water habits. Whether you are at the water or spending time at home, talking about the water and safe water habits is also essential. Opening the conversation about water safety allows your little one to ask questions and understand more about staying safe around water. Unsure of where to start? We can help! There is still time to enroll in our Spring Learn-To-Swim Program! All of our instructors believe that a parent is their child's first teacher and are an essential part of the learn-to-swim process. We want all of our families to have the tools to support their little swimmers during swim lessons and at home! Considering swim lessons for your children?
Click the button below to view our swim schedule. We can't wait to support you and your swimmers in building safe water habits! When someone mentions swimming, what's the first thing that comes to mind? For me, it's SUMMER! I think of beautifully warm weather with the sun shining high in the sky, building sandcastles on the beach with my little one, and running in and out of the water to cool off. Although summer first comes to mind, summer is not the only time of year our little ones are exposed to water. We live on a planet where 71% of our earth is made up of water. Our children experience water every day in and around our homes. As parents, if we are always teaching our little ones about the things they encounter daily, why are most children only learning about the water during the spring/summertime? Why not continue learning about the water all year long through year-round learn-to-swim programs? There are so many benefits to children taking swim lessons year-round! Check out our top three reasons we believe it's essential for children to participate in swimming and water safety activities all year long! 1. Use it or lose it! Regression Is Real! When a skill isn't used frequently or has not yet become a habit, we naturally tend to forget some aspects or all of that skills. With children who tend to take swim lessons one season a year, instructors often notice that they forget some of the previous skills they have previously mastered. The benefit of swimming lessons year-round is that swimmers consistently build their skills without experiencing the frustration of regression. Swimmers work with instructors to continuously refine their skills to ensure that they enjoy the water safely! 2. Practice Makes Permanent! Has someone ever told you "practice makes perfect"? Our philosophy is a little different - We believe that practice makes permanent! At Teach America To Swim, we think it's important to build safe water habits that will last a lifetime! The best way to build these habits is through consistent practice with a trained instructor providing feedback. Although we strongly encourage all swimmers to practice their strokes outside of lessons, we know that frequent training without a certified instructor could lead to poor technique and unsafe water habits. The benefit of swimming lessons year-round is that swimmers consistently get specific, intentional instruction and feedback to help build and refine their swimming skills while establishing safe water habits. 3. Building Good Habits & Lifeskills There are so many life skills that children learn during swim lessons and water safety skills. Children who tend to participate in swim lessons have opportunities to:
The benefit of swimming lessons year-round is that swimmers have more opportunities to build relationships, use everyday life skills in a supported environment, and exercise! Who knows, maybe your little one could be the next Olympic swimmer! There are so many benefits to participating in swim lessons year-round. Spring is almost upon us, and then it's soon to be summer! Let's start building safe water habits with your little one! Interested in registering for swim lessons? Find lessons in your area!
The bath is a great place to safely support your little one's curiosity about water, start building safe water habits at a young age, and even learn some fundamental swimming skills. At first, some little ones might be fussy during bath time and others may love it immediately! It's always important to acknowledge their feelings, reassure them that they are ok, and encourage them to try new things. As they become more comfortable during bath time, we, as parents and guardians, can support their curiosity by teaching them about the water through songs and play. Check out three of our favorite activities you can do in the bath to ensure your little one has a positive water experience while learning foundational swimming skills. Make it rain This is an excellent activity to help your little one get adjusted to the water. You can use your hands, a sponge, a toy watering can, or little toy bath cups to sprinkle water on your little one's body. It's important to start at their toes and gradually move up their body so they can begin to observe what they are experiencing. Two tips for doing this activity with your little one: TIP 1. You may want to narrate when is happening while you are sprinkling water on their body. For example, Mommy is sprinkling water on your toe-toes. Daddy is putting some water on your tummy. This will help develop language and allow them to associate this feeling with what is happening. TIP 2. Sing A Song! For some little ones, adding music is soothing. Some songs we sing while doing this activity in swim lessons are: "Rain, Rain Go Away" or "Mary, Mary Quite Contrary." Of course, feel free to sing your little one's favorite song too! Talk to the fishies Talking to the fishies helps your little one start to develop one of the most fundamental swimming skills, breath control. When encouraging your little one to talk to the fishies, you want to make sure you have one or both hands under their chest to at first keep their face above water. Begin to lower their head slowly into the water starting with their chin and then lips. If they are comfortable with that, then move to submerge their nose, eyes, and forehead. While you are beginning to submerge their head, encourage them to blow or exhale to make the water move. Tell them that when you do this under the water, you can talk to the fishies! Once your little one's lips are under the water, they may notice that instead of the water just moving, they are actually blowing bubbles. Be sure to point this out to your little one. Eventually, we want your little one to associate talking to the fishies with blowing bubbles underwater. Two tips for talking to the fishies: TIP 1. Go at your little one's pace. If they are uncomfortable at first with being on their tummy, reassure them and try to sing a song to camp them down. If they are still uncomfortable, it's okay to stop and try again next time. Consider pushing your little one a little further each time they are in the bath. TIP 2. Some little one's better associate exhaling with blowing at birthday cake candles. If your little one likes to open their mouth instead of exhaling, practice with a candle outside of the bath, especially if their first birthday is coming up! If you're happy and you know it... If you're happy and you know it... is one of our FAVORITE activities to do without little ones because it teaches and reinforces four fundamental swimming and water safety skills: moving to safety, breath control, arm movement, and leg movement. While singing the song "If You're Happy And You Know It", you will replace the actions in the song with these fundamental swimming and water safety skills: bobbing or jumping up and down, blowing bubbles, scooping, or moving their arms in forwarding circles, kicking or moving their legs up and down. Lyrics: If you're happy and you know it bob up and down. If you're happy and you know it bob up and down. If you're happy and you know it and you really want to show it, If you're happy and you know it bob up and down. Repeat with other skills: blow some bubbles, scoop your arms, kick your feet Two Tips for singing the swimming version of "If You're Happy And You Know It" TIP 1. If you have a tiny little one, at first all your motions will be hand-over-hand motions. You will be moving their body for them until they have associated the words of the songs to their actions and are able to perform the actions on their own. TIP 2. If you are first introducing this to your little one, consider practicing only one skill at a time. Once you've noticed they are beginning to pick one that first skill, like talking to the fishies or bouncing up and down, then introduce the next skill. Over the course of a few weeks, you can sing the entire song with all four different actions. Encouraging your little one to try new things during bath time by singing songs and learning through play fosters a love for learning and the water. This transfers to their learning experiences for the rest of their lives, especially in swimming lessons. By doing these activities in the bath you are building the foundation for a water-smart and water safety-aware child, all while creating an unbreakable bond between you and your little one. Stay tuned next week as we dive further into the four fundamental swimming skills! Download our FREE Bath Time Activity Sheet to keep the directions of these activities nearby when it's bath time!
Did you know that January is Bath Safety Awareness Month? Bath time is one of your baby's first experiences with the water! It can also be a special bonding time for you and your little one. Before jumping in, it's important to learn about bath safety and ways to keep bath time a safe and enjoyable experience. Bath safety awareness is vital information all parents must know because the repercussions of not educating yourself could be a fatal incident. Drowning is still the number one cause of accidental death in children ages 1-4. Two-thirds of all drowning deaths in infants and toddlers occur in bathtubs. Don't forget that drowning is often silent and can happen in just an inch or two of water! While all these facts are super scary to think about, the good news is that drowning is also 100% preventable! Let keep bath time a safe and enjoyable experience for all by keeping these top three safety tips in mind while setting up a bath: TIP 1: Bring everything to the bathroom before you fill the tub! It's important to have everything you need in the bathroom before turning on the water. Once you start filling the tub with water you never want to leave your little one unattended! Our bathtubs are slippery and accidents happen. Always stay attentive and keep your eyes on your little one. Staying with your little one will reinforce a positive water experience and it gives you the opportunity to respond promptly should an emergency arise. Consider bringing the following items into the bathroom before you get started:
TIP 2: Monitor the bath temperature and water levels! Have you ever been in the shower and someone flushes the toilet and all of a sudden the water either gets really cold or really hot? Not fun, right? As your baby starts to learn about the water, we want to create the most comfortable environment possible. Monitoring the water temperature of your little one's bath can help prevent those freezing cold or scalding hot moments. It's recommended by the Mayo Clinic that bath temperature should be around 100 Degrees Fahrenheit. Unsure of how to test the water temperature? Pick up one of those fun floating pool thermometers in the shape of a froggy or duckie that can float in the tub during bath time. Not into the froggy & ducks, you can also purchase a water thermometer online or in most sporting goods stores. Another important thing to monitor when setting up a bath for your little one is the water level. The water level in the bath should be no more than waist-deep if your little one is old enough to sit in the tub. If you are still using an infant tub, you should only leave about 2 inches of water in the tub. If you're worried about your little one catching a chill from the difference between the water and air temperatures, consider keeping the door to the bathroom closed during bath time and using the steam from the bath to warm the room. Remember that you've brought your towels in the bathroom, so they should be nearby if your little one is getting too cold. TIP 3: Keep the toilet lid closed at all times! While preparing a bath, your little one is most likely in the bathroom with you unless you have another responsible adult attending to your little one while you set things up. As the well-prepared Mama or Papa that you are, you've probably already baby-proofed your bathroom cabinets, especially if you have crawlers and toddlers roaming around, but there's one more bathroom feature to keep a close eye on... the toilet. Another most commonplace for drownings or water emergencies to occur is the toilet. I know what you're thinking, eww that's gross. BUT, it's true! Consider your little one's perspective... "Ooo look water, I can splash and play." If you don't have another adult to help with bath time, the best thing you can do to keep your little one out of the "potty water" would be to close the lid! This way the "potty water" is out of sight and your little one is most likely not going to be interested. Getting your little one ready for bath time is WORK! There are so many things to remember. Consider coming up with a bath time routine that works best for you and your family. Turn these tips into new family habits to keep your little ones safe and bath time a super fun water experience! Remember making these small changes at home teaches your little one safe water habits from a young age. Check back in throughout the month for some fun things you can do with your little one during bath time! Find this information helpful?
Download our FREE water safety at home guide to learn more water safety tips at home. You'll learn safety tips & habits to teach your children when near water in the kitchen and in the yard!
Last week, the National Drowning Prevention Alliance published a statistic from the Total Aquatic Programming's Drowning Data that showed there were 46 registered drowning incidences in November 2021. With drowning statistics still so higher, there could be a time where you and your family are out enjoying a day at the pool or beach and recognize that someone needs help. Educating yourself and teaching your children about what to do if they see someone who needs help could not only save that person's life, it could also help ensure their own safety while helping someone in need.
Here are some tips and information you can teach your children about what to do if they notice someone who is in distress while in the water.
How to recognize someone who needs help?
There are many common signs for someone who is in distress. Knowing these signs and signals could prevent a distressed person become a fatal statistic.
Common signs of someone who is in distress are:
Who you need to call and what you need to say?
If there an ever an emergency either in the water or on land, it's important to teach your little ones who to call and what they should tell that person.
Teach your little one to call 911 if there is ever an emergency. Be sure to explain what an emergency is. We recommend teaching your children that an emergency is a situation that is a risk to your life, health, or home. We recommend you tailor this definition to meet the developmental ages of your children. It's important to teach your little ones what they should tell the 911 operator that picks up the phone. 911 operators are trained to ask questions that will help them determine what responders are needed at the scene. By teaching your children what to tell the 911 operator, it could contribute to faster response times. Teach your children to provide the following information:
What can you do while waiting for help to arrive?
There are sometimes in which EMS has a longer response time due to the location of the incident. If your children see someone who is in need of help and know that it may take some time before EMS or a trained rescuer responds to the emergency, there are safe ways they can respond that could save a life. It's just as important to practice the following responses as it is to talk about them. Practicing these top three safest ways to respond to a water emergency will ensure their safety while helping someone in distress.
Top three safest ways to help someone in distress:
Each situation will vary and the approach you choose will be based on where the person in distress is. Regardless of the situation, it's important to remember that you should NEVER go in the water to rescue someone unless you are a certified lifeguard or rescuer. Accidents happen and we don't want you to become another fatal static while trying to help someone in need. Certified lifeguards and trained rescuers have specialized training to help them safely rescue someone in distress.
Rescuing someone who is in distress and using a reach, throw, or row approach when a trained lifeguard or rescuer is not around could save a life. If a person in distress is not rescued, they will drown. There could be a time where your children notice someone in distress. Let's teach them the tools they need to safely save a life.
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While it's a fact that accidents happen, it's important to teach our little ones how best to respond. Having the skills and knowledge of what to do in case of an emergency or dangerous situation can save a life! Below you will find the top three scenarios and how you should teach your children to respond if they are even in one of these dangerous situations. SCENARIO 1: While swimming you can no longer touch the bottom and are starting to feel tired. You should... bob back to an area where you can stand in chest-deep water. To bob back to shore, you push off the bottom of the swimming area (lake, ocean, pool, etc.) as hard as you can and leap forward. Take a breath when your head is above water and then take another leap forward. Continue this pattern until you are back in chest-deep water. If you are too tired to continue, float on your back or tread water while calling for help. SCENARIO 2: While you are swimming you see lightning or hear thunder nearby. You should... get out of the water immediately and leave the swimming area. If possible, get indoors. SCENARIO 3: While swimming at the beach, you notice that the current keeps pulling you further away from the shore and you are having a difficult time making any forward progress swimming back. You are most likely caught in a riptide. You should... start swimming parallel to the beach instead of swimming back to shore. Once you no longer feel the pull away from the shore, you are out of the riptide and can begin swimming diagonally back to shore. If you are too tired to continue, float on your back or tread water while calling for help. Keep floating until someone comes to rescue you, someone throws you a floatation device, you no longer feel the pull away from the shore, or you have the energy to start swimming again. Understanding what to do in dangerous situations is part of being a safe water-competent swimmer. To learn more about your swimmers' knowledge of water safety and how you can support them at home, take our water competency quiz!
Creating a set of family rules about water safety will help make sure everyone in the house knows the expectations about water safety. It teaches your children that you value the importance of water safety.
Tip 1: Keep the rules short, but important!
Keeping the rules short meaning small phrases and just a few, helps children remember them. When you are first starting to come up with family water safety rules, consider starting with 3-5 rules Once you've begun to see your swimmers have mastered them. Once you recognize that these rules have become their new habit, you can start teaching them new water safety rules they should know.
Tip 2: State each rule/expectation in the positive!
For years parents and educators have been telling children what "not" to do. Studies have proven that by framing rules in the positive, people are not only more receptive to the instruction, but also know exactly what is expected of them. Therefore they are more likely to adhere to that rule.
Tip 3: Practice them over and over again before going to the water!
Growing up you were probably told that practice makes perfect. Well, recently I've heard a new phrase... Practice makes progress! Learning about water safety is not something we want to learn once and forget. Revisit safe water practices will help them become habits. Safe water habits are what we want to instill in our children. Remember that if we don't use it, we lose it. It's essential to always keep the topic of water safety open to continuously develop water safety habits and stay true to your values.
Tip 4: Make sure everyone in the family knows and follows the rules!
Most children learn best by watching their adult role models do things. If water safety is something you value, modeling safe water habits for your children will help make these new rules the new habit.
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Did you know our world is 71% water?
97% of that water is our beautiful blue oceans! The ocean is an incredible place to travel to on a family vacation or a beautiful place to spend your summer days if you live nearby. As beautiful as our oceans are, they are magnificently complex. Check out these tips to keep your family safe when swimming in our oceans!
Tip 1: Check the weather & tides before swimming.
We often talk about the importance of checking the weather before going swimming. When heading to the ocean, not only is it important to check the weather, it's also important to be aware of the tide schedule before going swimming. Our moon's gravitational pull affects our oceans. This is what creates high tide - the water is higher on the shoreline with a smaller sandy area, and low tide - the water is further away and there is more sand on the beach.
Knowing about the tides is important because this will alter where the water drop-offs are in the swimming area. It can also affect the undertow and rip currents. Two features of the ocean that swimmers MUST know about before going swimming.
Tip 2: Always swim in the designated swimming area when a lifeguard is on duty.
When swimming at a beach swimming areas are most likely marked with red and green flags. It is important to swim between the green flags. This is the area that is not only supervised by a lifeguard, it's an area where surfers, kayakers, paddle-boarders, and boaters cannot enter.
Tip 3: Know about rip current and what to do if you get caught in one.
Rip currents are a strong, often narrow, current that brings water away from the shore and back out to sea.
NOAA (National Ocean & Atmospheric Administration) has put together an excellent Q&A all about rip currents included how and why they are formed along with more safety tips. You can find thatQ&A Here! What to do if you get caught in a riptide:
What to do if you see someone who needs help:
Tip 4: Swim at least 100 feet from piers or jetties
Piers and docks are used mostly for boats or for people to walk on to enjoy the beautiful beach scene.
Jetties are built to help protect and sustain our beaches. They can be dangerous to swim near because the current can sweep you towards these areas before you know it. Swimming near these man-made structures can cause injury. Be sure to swim at least 100 feet away from them. If you notice that you are getting closer to these structures, you can get out of the water and walk future down the beach to swim in a safer place. You can also swim in the opposite direction providing that the current isn't that strong.
Our beaches can be a beautiful place to enjoy the scenery for a day, weekend, or a longer vacation. It's important you and your families know these and other safety tips before swimming at the beach.
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Most people think that if my swimmer learns to swim in a pool, they will know exactly what they need to do when swimming in open water. While learning swimming skills in a pool is a fantastic start, as parents, there is more teaching we need to do to ensure our swimmers know how to stay safe in open water due to different features that are not in a pool setting. Check out these three tips that you swimmer MUST know about Lakes, Rivers, & Streams.
Tip 1: Always check the weather before going swimming.
So often we find that our weather changes in a day. Growing up on the coast, we would sometimes have very cold rainy mornings, but by mid-day, the bright sun came out, dried up the rainy weather, and created the perfect beach day. After moving to Vermont, I quickly learned about mountain weather - we could wake up to the perfect lake or boating day, spend a few hours in the sun, but then my 4pm, without fail, a thunderstorm we start rolling in.
Regardless of where you live, if you are planning to head out to the lake, a river, jump in a watering hole, or go fishing in streams, be sure to check the weather. Meteorologists do their best to give us the most accurate weather information and while we know it may not be 100% accurate, it's important to be aware of what could happen. You should never be in, on, or around the water when a storm hits.
Tip 2: Always swim in the designated swimming area when a lifeguard is on duty.
Lakes that are safe for swimming always have a designated swimming area. This is an area that is a safe place to swim because it is maintained by the lifeguard staff. Hazards are moved out of this area and boats are permitted from coming into this area.
Keep in mind, if you plan to go boating, fishing, or kayaking in a river or stream, there is typically NOT a designated swimming area. This doesn't mean to can't jump in for a dip, but it does mean that you must be aware of any potential hazards while swimming in open water.
Tip 3: Get familiar with your swimming environment.
Regardless of whether you are swimming in a designated swimming area, boating in a river, or fishing in a local stream, you must become familiar with your swimming environment. Learn about the area before you go swimming. While at the lake, consider asking a lifeguard about any sudden drop-offs, currents, rapids, debris, etc. that you should be aware of so you can make water-safe decisions.
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