There are so many activities that children can participate in and the choices continue to grow as they get older. When my children were young, they participated in swimming, dance, cheerleading, gymnastics, and a few other activities. We were constantly having to make decisions about what needs to be the priority. When our oldest was 12 years old, she was an excellent swimmer and had been taking lessons since she was two years old, so at that point her top priority became cheerleading. Our youngest was constantly impressing us with her swimming skills. She loved the water and always chose swimming over any other activity. She willingly continued swim lessons long after she was considered a safe swimmer. However, when our middle daughter was around 5 years old, we decided to let her take a break from lessons, because she was swimming at a level that we considered “safe” and we thought she could save herself if necessary. Unfortunately, that was not actually the case. Four short months after we let her take a break, we were at the pool and as I was watching her swim I realized that she was struggling. The child that I considered water-safe was scaring me and the lifeguard to the point that we made her stay in the shallow water. Having been around swimming pools and water my whole life, I am constantly telling people how important it is to keep their kids in swimming lessons until they are proficient. Yet I seemed to have forgotten how quickly a child can lose those life-skills and no longer be water-safe after just a short break from lessons. Studies show that a child will lose 20-40% of their skills within 5 weeks of the end of instruction. That is to say, without practice, their skills will diminish.
Many times, we see parents withdraw their child from swimming because they have other commitments or the child wants to try a different activity or they just do not want to swim anymore. I’m assuming that most parents do not give their child a choice in wearing seatbelts or bicycle helmets, because we all know that taking those small measures could mean the difference between life and death. So my question is why is swimming so different? It is a life-saving skill that could mean the difference between life and death for your child. According to the CDC, drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1-4 years old and the second leading cause of unintentional injury death for children ages 5-14. Poolsafely.com says out of all drowning deaths, 76% involve children under the age of 5 and 68% of those deaths are amongst children ages 1-3 years old. There are 4,000 drowning deaths each year in the United States. And an average of 6,300 children under the age of 15 are treated by an emergency department each year for nonfatal drowning injuries. While drowning deaths can occur in many locations, 85% are in residential areas. Swimming is a life-saving skill and needs to be a top priority for all families, including my own.
In the past we have always said that a child who can swim approximately 25 feet is a proficient swimmer. However, after watching how quickly a child can lose their swimming skills, I revamped my theories on “proficient” swimming. I now believe that we need to raise the bar from proficient swimming to water-safe swimming. A water-safe child can swim continuously for a short period of time (typically 5-10 minutes), retains most of their skills after a short break (less than 2 months out of the water), and can recall those skills in an emergency situation. There is no specific age when a child will be considered safe, as each child is different, and their learning skills will vary. We can never guarantee that a child is drown-proof, however we do know that children who swim year-round and complete all our levels are more likely to be water-safe than a child who only swims seasonally.
Starting children at a young age is the best way to create water-safe children. Water is very natural for newborns and infants, because of the womb-like environment. By starting a child in lessons at a young age, it develops good water habits and they are more likely to become accustomed to the water more quickly. We also believe that there is no “end” age for swimming! It is a life-long skill that we can enjoy all the way through adulthood.
We know that families have plenty of activities and commitments to schedule around, but it is our sincere hope and desire that your family will making swimming a top priority. If scheduling or finances are keeping you from enrolling your child, please contact us. We are more than happy to work with you and help in any way that we can. We want children to leave our program and know that they are safe and that you are confident in their abilities.