Water Safety Month: Pool Safety

69% of young children who drown were not expected to be in or near water (source: American Red Cross). Learn how to reduce the risks. When visiting pools, make sure that your children are supervised closely and that they are familiar with pool safety rules.

Our featured partner is the American Red Cross.

The American Red Cross believes that by working together to improve water competency – which includes swimming skills, water smarts and helping others – water activities can be safer… and just as much fun.

Activities

Head over to our Facebook page to check out our “Orange You Gonna Wear Your Life Jacket?” video. Learn how to demonstrate the importance of wearing a life jacket with just an orange and some water.

Do the activity at home, share a photo or video with us on Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag #GTXParksAndRec and you’ll be entered into a drawing to win a youth life jacket! The winner will be announced at the end of the month.

Orange You Gonna Wear Your Life Jacket Activity Sheet (PDF)

Resources

Water Safety for Parents and Caregivers
This FREE online course focuses on developing an awareness of the risks of drowning and how to minimize those risks, especially for young children. This online course teaches parents and caregivers about the concepts of the circle of drowning prevention, water competency and the chain of drowning survival. It also provides guidance for applying water safety to common environments and situations where children are most at risk for drowning.

WHALE Tales Parent & Caregiver Guide
Meet Longfellow! His WHALE Tales are short, engaging and age-appropriate videos that teach important water safety topics designed for kids in grades K-6. Each episode centers on a memorable rhyming phrase to help children retain what they’ve learned.

Red Cross Mobile Swim App
This FREE app teaches drowning prevention, tracks swimming progress and more.