Water Safety

Many toddlers―curious, active and eager to explore their surroundings―are attracted to water. It shines, ripples, splashes, and can even make things float! Toddlers don’t understand that water can be dangerous and aren’t old enough yet to do what is needed when in trouble. It’s essential to protect them from water hazards.

Babies are drawn to water and quickly discover the fun of splashing it. To keep babies safe, protect against potential water hazards at home and away from home.

Kids can get lost anywhere—at an amusement park, in a store, in a crowd, and sometimes even right in their neighborhood. Many parents of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) know this experience. Tips on how parents can keep kids safe, including in and around water, are included.

Having a pool, pond, spa, or hot tub on personal property, or visiting a pool, is a huge responsibility when it comes to safety. Use the layers of protection suggested in this article to keep kids safe in and around in water.

Drowning is preventable. Follow these key prevention steps: properly fence home swimming pools, learn how to swim and teach children how to swim, supervise children closely and constantly when they are in or near water, and wear a properly fitted life jacket. These steps can all reduce the risk of drowning.

Learning to swim should be a priority for every family. It’s an important life skill that can play a key role in helping to prevent drowning. Children, and their parents, need to learn how to swim to help keep time in the water safe and fun! Here are some tips from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) on the best time to start swim lessons and what to look for in a quality learn-to-swim program.

Most drownings result from inadequate supervision when a caregiver becomes distracted by a phone, doorbell, or other children. Drowning tragedies can be prevented by constantly supervising children at all times when they are near water. This article gives safety tips for parents and caregivers around swimming pools, baby pools, bathrooms, and other areas.

Water play is a big part of summer fun. Creating safe environments for children around water is the first step to making sunny-day family memories that will last a lifetime. This article offers parent tips on water safety for children age four and younger.

For many reasons, swimming is the best sport for kids to learn first. This article explains the benefits of swimming for children and why early lessons are important as well as how swimming can help children in school, sports, and more.