I grew up around a lake and was always around water.We could all swim,but our rule was unless you were in a swimming area you had a life vest on.Maybe my mom was over protective,but I am stunned that non-swimmers will be in rivers without life vests.It is a recipe for disaster.Several people die that way every year here in Oregon.
Your mom wasn't over protective. My father did the same when my brothers and I were young. We were the only kids who had life vests available... He did NOT belive in cheap floating toys.
I don't know why schools don't care to give kids water safety lectures...
For those who can swim, how about teaching them how to rescue? It is not uncommon that a good swimmer who tries to rescue someone is pulled underwater and also drowns.
You are so right about it! And many teen life gurads need to practice on rescue and swimmimg skills more often. I know many of them can NOT swim enough to rescue people.
My friends Matt and Sarah are teaching their child to swim @ 1 year old. The little girl already puts her head under water. She's been trying to do that in the tub since she was about 4-5 months old!
I think every parent should do that. I never really lap swam until college, but my mom made sure I wouldn't drown by the time I was 4!
Yeah, I agree with you. One of the main reasons kids are afraid of water or cannot swim is that their parents never put them in the water because they are afraid of water.
Parents and young kids can both get in the water(baby pool) and learn water safety plus have fun. The point: parents have to do this with thier kids.
Common sense, water safety instruction (don't go in if you can't swim): another tragedy in Chicago early yesterday morning:
articles.chicagotribune.com/.../ct-met-missing-boaters-0807-20100806_1_sailing-director-fishing-boat-columbia-yacht-club
Experienced sailor and skipper decided to jump in for a 2 a.m. swim, along with his 3 passengers, leaving no one on board the vessel, which drifted away. Two women were picked up hours later by a fishing boat; skipper drowned, second man being searched for. (Unless it was foggy they should have been able to see the shoreline and buildings from 1-2 miles out. Many details are unclear.)
Condolences to the families.
As a H S teacher , I saw what they do in gym class for the swimming section. Many old gym teachers throw out a water polo ball & let the kids play or the girls sit on the side with their monthly for 3 weeks !
True - many never get hair wet & scream if they do!
And they have spanish acc 5 & 6, home ec for boys & 3 study halls .
I retired just in time to stay out of trouble !
Good swimming lessons include water safety and teach people respect for those situations. Non swimmers have the worst of all worlds, they can't swim and often don't realize how dangerous it is.
I have to wonder too if among teens and to some extent pre-teens, there's a kind of machismo about listening to an instructor. In the film "Pride," when the actor playing Ellis gave one kid some tips about his technique, the kid at first sneered... until Ellis beat him in a race.
Just a thought. Even when I was a kid, among my peers (fortunately, my parents and many others insisted on our taking lessons), there was a kind of competition about who would go in deepest or jump into the biggest waves. I never was all that much interested in that kind of jockeying for position... mainly because at the time, yes, I was a water wimp and took my time to get used to swimming and going into deep water. But I took some verbal abuse because of that. But at least my peers and I had lessons and our parents set limits--no swimming without a lifeguard present or outside a marked swimming area--and there were consequences if we didn't follow those rules.
Without that kind of structure and with the feeling, "I don't need lessons. I'm too cool for that," there are drownings waiting to happen.
A deadly belief. One quote I read--forget which article, "you won't die not knowing how to play basketball."
