Living near the lake in the steamy south, my family is in and around either a lake or pool almost every weekend. Last weekend, I took 3 kids to a neighbor's "beach" (a fearless 2 yo, confident 8 yo, and weak 8 yo swimmer). On the way, we stopped at ANOTHER neighbor's house to see if 2 MORE kids wanted to tag along (confident 6 yo, and weak 6 yo swimmer). We decided that another adult would be needed given the number of kids (5 in all). Also, the weak swimmers and 2 yo had to wear PFDs (not just inflatables) if they wanted to go over their head. We had a "deep end" landmark that the "big" kids weren't allowed to pass without getting an OK from one of the adults.
This article has some good tips for keeping kids safe. I especially liked the bit about how bright-colored swimsuits can make finding submerged kiddos easier to find. Excerpts from Parents Magazine:
""Drowning is quick and silent," says Parents advisor Martin Eichelberger, MD, president and CEO of Safe Kids and director of emergency trauma and burn services at Children's National Medical Center, in Washington, D.C. "Young kids rarely make a big splash, thrash around, or scream for help like you see on TV. They usually fall in head first and sink to the bottom like a rock." A child who's underwater will lose consciousness after two minutes and suffer irreversible brain damage within four to six minutes."
...
"Most toddlers and preschoolers drown in swimming pools, whereas kids ages 5 to 14 are more likely to drown in oceans, lakes, or rivers. (Babies are at greatest risk in bathtubs.) And even when parents know that a child has fallen into a pool or a lake, she can be surprisingly difficult to find."
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