Teach your children

The idea of teaching kids to swim was (I thought) an asset to only those families who owned a swimming pool. But, after researching articles and statistics for our National Water Safety Month this past May, I have learned an invaluable lesson–EVERY child should learn to swim. Water is everywhere–lakes, ponds, canals, beaches, swimming pools–and it shouldn’t be feared, but respected. The best lesson you can give your children is to acclimate them to the water and learn basic swimming and critical survival skills to prevent drowning.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, (CDC) drowning death rates decreased 28% from 1.6 to 1.2 per 100,000; however, drowning has now become the leading cause of injury death among children 1-4 years of age. And more than 30% of those children ages 1-4 who died from unintentional injury died from drowning, with most of those occurring in home swimming pools.
So, have you been thinking what age would be appropriate to teach your children to swim? The American Academy of Pediatrics‘ (AAP) policy statements in years passed were that children should not be taught to swim before the age of 4 due to lack of evidence that proved the lessons were actually being applied in real-life situations to prevent drowning.
Now, according to recent studies (2010), the AAP now recommends children 1 to 4 should be taught how to swim, and may be less likely to drown if they have had formal swimming instruction. But, the AAP does disclaim that a parents’ best judgment should be used when preparing to implement swimming lessons. Because all children develop motor and cognitive skills at different rates, not every child will be ready to swim by the recommend age.