As parents, we want to do our best for our kids, and nothing makes us happier than seeing them laughing and having fun. When the warm weather arrives in Nashville, few family activities rival a day at the pool.
Naturally, parents want to make that experience as safe as possible. For families with young children, that might mean putting a child in a puddle jumper so a child can float independently or standing nearby to catch them as they jump from the deck. While these choices come from a good place, they can unintentionally create an unrealistic sense of independence and safety in the water.
It can melt a mom’s heart to see her young child standing excitedly at the pool’s edge, eager to jump into her arms. And it’s fun for the child, too. They jump; the parent catches them, lifting them immediately up and out of the water. Repeat. But when this happens every time, the wrong message is being delivered. The child may feel invincible when they decide to jump into the water.
Similarly, children who consistently wear puddle jumpers (swim aids that combine a chest vest with attached arm floaties) can become accustomed to being held upright, with their heads above the water’s surface and their arms held out to the sides. This doesn’t teach them how their bodies naturally respond without artificial buoyancy or how to remain calm and regain control independently.
Meaningful water safety isn’t about shielding a child from submerging, but about giving them an age-appropriate understanding of the environment, their abilities in the water, and the skills they need to develop.
Children Learn Best From Professional Instructors
Safety when swimming comes from kids learning to navigate the water independently. But when a parent tries to put on their “instructor’s cap” to teach these skills, the parent/child dynamic never really disappears. Professional instruction creates that degree of separation, helping children receive guidance and practice their skills in a focused learning environment.
At Nashville Swim Academy, our instructors are enthusiastic, well-trained professionals who understand how to help kids develop their skills in a safe, supportive, progressive manner. Kids learn how their bodies feel in the water, how to control their breathing, maintain stability, turn from their tummies to their backs, float independently, and use their arms and legs to propel themselves forward.
A clear understanding of their abilities, sound judgment, and respect for the environment form the foundations of swimming safety. Parents can then piggyback on these lessons, enjoying family pool time while reinforcing what their children are learning.
Safety in a Swimming Pool: What Does Active Supervision at the Pool Mean?
Among the most important swimming pool safety tips parents can follow is to watch children closely and continuously. Being nearby while using a phone, reading a book, or engaging in conversation is not the same as active supervision.
On this note, older siblings should never be made responsible for supervising younger children, nor should the presence of a lifeguard replace direct parental attention.
Parents should also be aware that shallow water is not safe water, and that bathtubs and wading pools can be deceptively unsafe for an unattended child. Drowning can happen in just one to two inches of water, and leaving a child alone in either environment, even for a moment, puts them in extreme danger. According to the TN Department of Health, 21 children in this state died by drowning in 2020, with 97% of these incidents considered preventable.
Confidence in the Water Begins With Swim Skills
At Nashville Swim Academy, our goal is to help kids develop a lifelong love of the water by teaching them to respect it and become confident in it.
To that end, we encourage parents to enroll their kids in swim lessons early, starting with our Parent & Me classes, so they learn pool safety while developing foundational skills through sensory exploration alongside their parent or caregiver.
For toddlers and older children, our year-round program follows a natural progression in skills development and water safety, starting with our FUNdamentals Stages, followed by our SAFEty Stages, and finally our TECHnique Stages of programming. We keep classes small, group our swimmers according to age and ability, and follow an adaptive learning philosophy that meets each child where they are.
Give your child the foundational skills they need for a lifetime of safety in and around the water. Find the right class at Nashville Swim Academy in The Nations and enroll today.