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Pool Safety: How to Keep Your Kids Safe This Summer!

Pool Safety: How to Keep Your Kids Safe This Summer!

When you think about summer, you think about the fun things we associate with warm weather: playing outdoor sports, barbeques, working in the garden, and of course cooling off in a pool. Swimming is a great way to relax on a summer day, but keeping your kids safe is the most important thing.  Exercising proper pool safety is the best way to make sure everyone enjoys the day without injury. Now that some pools are starting to open, we have put together some tips to keep you and all of your guests safe around the water.   

 

Supervise the Pool

Paying attention to who is in your pool and what is happening is the best way to prevent accidents and injuries. If there are children in your pool, remind all of the adults in attendance of how many kids will be swimming and their individual skill levels. If young children or weak swimmers are in the pool, make sure there is a competent adult within arm’s reach at all times, which is called “reach supervision.”

 

Build Swimming Skill

Taking classes is a great way to make sure your family has the skills they need to be safe in the water. Reach out to your local YMCA or neighborhood pool and ask about swim lessons for your kids. Even if your kids have taken lessons, that doesn’t mean you don’t have to keep a close eye on them. Bigger kids should be also be supervised. Don’t forget that reach supervision is an extra level of security for young swimmers of all skill levels. Giving little kids swimmies or arm floaties is a good idea even if they know swim basics. 

 

Learn CPR

Taking a CPR class will give you the extra confidence and necessary skill set to enjoy a pool day. Even if you don’t have time to take a class in person, The American Red Cross offers online-only CPR courses. The online course will not get you certified in CPR, but it details the skills you need to save a life just in case. 

 

Explain the Do’s and Don’ts 

It’s tough to constantly be correcting children who are just trying to have fun. But running around the pool deck risks slips and falls and the following bumps and bruises. Pushing unsuspecting people into the pool can be dangerous for them and any devices they might have on them. And games like dunking and chicken fighting pose risks in the pool. Let everyone know the rules before they start swimming and enforce them. 

 

Buy Safety Equipment 

Fences, alarms and rescue equipment, such as lifesavers, keep you and your guests safe. Pool fences have gates only adults or taller children can reach and an above ground pool fence is an added level of security around the pool itself. Safety Covers, used to cover your pool when not in use, provide a last line of defense. No person or animal can fall into the water when you have a properly installed safety cover. 


First Aid Kit

Many pool accidents happen outside of the water. Kids and adults can slip very easily on a wet pool deck. Make sure you have a kit that contains disinfectant and bandages for bumps and scrapes, as well as other minor medical emergency supplies. A first-aid blanket is good to have on hand for anyone who might be in shock after a major incident. 

 

Follow these basic rules and equipment requirements and you are sure to have a safe, happy, and fun summer of pool fun.