Parent Info & FAQs

Tips and Advice for Parents from Professor Fish

Safety Tips

Life Vests – The Myths and Facts
When purchasing a personal floatation device (PFD) for your child, be aware of the written material provided by the Coast Guard as well as the disclaimers. Not all flotation devices guarantee that they will turn unconscious wearers face up in the water. The popular myth that wearing a life vest will prevent drownings is inaccurate. As the NBC Dateline news-story describes, life vests may keep a child afloat, however, if they are face-down their life may not be saved unless pulled from the water.

If you are a boater and a Starfish parent, we will happily test the safety of your child’s life jacket during a lesson. Speak to any of the management staff or email your instructor for details.        

NBC Dateline story about how life vests fail; transcript pdf

For more information on Life Vests and usage go to:
http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/mse4/pfdchilddata.htm
http://www.prospect-tech.com/pressrel/msnbc.htm

Personal Water Craft Safety
For information go to: http://www.uscgboating.org/articles/boatingview.aspx?id=89

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Little-Known Hazard on Pool Floors

There have been many preventable accidents where children have been injured or drowned due to being held underwater by the floor system of a pool or hot tub they were in. To learn more, view this video from CBS News about the hazards of pool floors.

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Moving to Another City? Need Help Finding a Swim School?

If you go to the US Swim Schools Web site, you will find a list of member schools across the country that have proven themselves worthy of the USSSA membership.

We have close relationships with the following schools and we highly recommend them.

Hubbardswim.com – Phoenix AZ
Goldmedalswimschool.com – Phoenix AZ
SwimkidsAZ.com – Phoenix AZ
Watersafe.com – CA
Qualityswimming.com – FL
Swimjim.com – NY
Bluebuoy.com – CA
Avac.us – CA
Swimlpb.com – CA
Millerswimschool.com – OK
Saf-t-swim.com – NY
Southwest Aquatics – FL
Swimtastic.com - WI

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The Star Thrower

A lesson . . . Once upon a time there was a wise man that used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day he was walking along the shore. As he looked down the beach, he saw a human figure moving like a dancer.

He smiled to himself to think of someone who would dance to the day. So he began to walk faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he saw that it was a young man and the young man wasn't dancing, but instead he was reaching down to the shore, picking up something and very gently throwing it into the ocean.

As he got closer he called out, “Good morning, what are you doing?”

The young man paused, looked up and replied, “Throwing starfish in the ocean.”

“I guess I should have asked, why are you throwing starfish in the ocean?”                       

“The sun is up and the tide is going out. And if I don’t throw them in they’ll die”                      

“But young man, don't you realize that there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it. You can’t possibly make a difference!”

The young man listened politely. Then bent down, picked another starfish and threw it into the sea, past the breaking waves and said, “It made a difference to that one.”                      

There is something very special in each and every one of us. We have all been gifted with the ability to make a difference. We must each find our starfish. And if we throw our stars wisely and well, the world will be blessed.

Adapted from the Star Thrower by Loren Eiseley  (1907 - 1977)

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How Can We Encourage Youngsters to Start Swimming?

Swimming is so important because it opens doors to every other aquatic sport. If you can't swim then it means you can't sail, row, play water polo or even play in the sea. If you want to do anything to do with water then you have to learn to swim. If that is not reason enough to get people to swim then what is?

Swimming also encourages a healthy lifestyle. It allows young people's bodies to develop in a very natural way at a young age. It is basically an injury-free sport. Very few swimmers injure themselves in the pool.

Swimming is recognized as a good aerobic base for all sports such as football and soccer. Like gymnastics, it is a base to the development of other sports.

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Does Swimming Increase the Incidence of Ear Infections in Children?

Robertson LM, Marino RV, Namjoshi S. Department of Pediatrics Winthrop-University Hospital,
Mineola, NY, USA. PMID: 9107124 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

Conclusion: Based on their findings, the authors conclude that there appears to be no basis to the commonly held belief that swimming may induce or exacerbate otitis media (aka "swimmer's ear"). In fact, the converse may be true.

Swimmer's Ear:

The condition commonly known as Swimmer's ear is different from an ear infection, which occurs in the middle ear space behind the eardrum. Swimmer’s ear occurs when water gets stuck in the ear canal. Lake water is the most likely to cause an infection, followed by ocean water, bath water, then pool water.

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Swimming and Ear Tubes?

The bottom line is that children should be allowed to swim in swimming pools and seawater without barrier methods (custom ear plugs, ear putty, bathing caps etc) since prospective clinical trials have not shown that swimming without water protection increases the risk of otorrhea.. Giannoni C, Swimming With Tympanostomy Tubes. Arch Otol H & N surg 2000;126:1507.

The practice of recommending water precautions for children with tubes grew out of what physicians thought was reasonable. However, the available evidence demonstrates that either prophylactic eardrops or custom ear molds have ever been shown to be effective, and may actually increase the risk for otorrhea. Water precautions for surface swimming in children with tympanostomy tubes are now considered unnecessary in most children. Otorrhea rates in swimmers with tubes are comparable with or without dry ear precautions. December 2002 by Richard H. Schwartz, MD, and Craig S. Derkay, MD Special to Infectious Diseases in Children.

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Parental Supervision

Once parents see that their children have mastered basic aquatic survival skills, there is a tendency to become more relaxed with watching them when they are around the water. Yes they are safer, but they are not drown-proof! No one is. Parents should always be in the water with their children, especially those under 5 years old, supervising their swimming. Do not leave children unattended around the water. Most accidents occur within moments of a parent becoming distracted. The best protection for the prevention of aquatic accidents is to constantly watch your children whenever they are in or around the water.

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Over parenting

Your child complains or whines before coming to swim lessons or whines continuously during the lessons.  It is now the second or third week.  At this point, some parents decide that their child must either be too young for swimming lessons or the teacher isn't right. You give in; stop the lessons and decide you’ll try later. Good choice? Read the latest info on “over parenting” and think again.

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When good intentions go too far, kids can suffer

You can spot them in the grocery store. They’re the moms with the shopping cart cover that’s supposed to protect babies from lurking germs. You can see them on the playground hovering over their toddlers, negotiating toy disputes for their 7-year-olds. They’re in high school, phoning teachers if their children bring home anything other than A's. They’re even at college -– intervening with professors, setting up their children’s dorm rooms and bank accounts and keeping in near-constant contact with their kids via cell phone and instant messaging.

They’re not just parents, they’re super-parents.

And while in many communities the above behavior is par for the parental course, psychologists say that super-parenting is really not so super. It’s more like over-anxious, over-vigilant and just plain overdone.

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Fragile Creatures?

Certainly, there are plenty of neglected children in America. But in middle class and upper middle class communities the coddled kid is becoming the norm, says Peter N. Stearns, a social historian at George Mason University and the author of "Anxious Parents: A History of Modern Child rearing in America."

“In the last few decades the belief became popular that children are exceptionally fragile creatures and we should treat them that way,” says Stearns.

The fact that many Americans are waiting longer to become parents and are having fewer children has also contributed greatly to the phenomenon. “If you have one or two children -– rather than four or five -- obviously, the individual child becomes much more precious,” he says.

Andrea J. Buchanan, author of "Mother Shock: Loving Every (Other) Minute of It," says she sees a clear link between super parenting and today’s highly educated mommy force. When it comes time to have children, she says, many career-oriented women still end up putting their career on the backburner and their children on the front. At the same time, many mothers (and fathers) try to bring the same work ethic to parenting as they once did to their careers: they’re willing to work hard, they’re ambitious and competitive, and they have a desire for accomplishment, control and results.

“Motherhood has become a profession without the paycheck and 401(k) plan,” says Buchanan.

Buchanan says she thinks the problem starts even before the baby arrives. “I like to use the trip analogy," she says. "Instead of just packing your suitcase and reading the tour book, many pregnant women are now made to feel they must learn how to fly the plane. So this is where it begins. You get sucked into it right then.” Parents are given this false notion that they can and should control all aspects of child-rearing from conception to the child’s post-doctoral work, she says.

The sum effect has been that parenting has become complicated beyond what most of us believe we can handle on our own, says Dr. Bernardo J. Carducci, a professor of psychology at Indiana University in New Albany, Ind., and the director of its Shyness Research Institute.

“As we make parenting more and more complicated," he says, "what happens is people are uncertain what to do. Every time you have uncertainty, you have anxiety.” According to Carducci, fear is the stuff of over parenting.

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Maternal Bling-Bling

Much of the $6 billion that Americans spend annually on baby gear is spent because marketers have scared us into buying it or because everyone we know has a certain stroller or diaper bag, Carducci says. It’s what he calls maternal bling-bling -- stuff we get to make us feel like we’re good parents.

“To alleviate your anxiety you buy what the marketers say you need and what the other mothers in Mommy-and-Me have," he says. "That’s conformity. You can look at a suburban mom and a rapper and see the same thing. They’re surrounded by this stuff. It’s a way to compare yourself to others and announce to the world that you’re a ‘good’ mom.”

Then, once a child starts school, the chances for over parenting and the pitfalls for not doing so abound. At the New York University Child Study Center, Dr. Alexandra Barzvi, clinical coordinator for their Institute of Anxiety and Mood, says it's a growing problem. “Many parents are even worked up about which preschool their child gets into," she says. "They see it as a very competitive world and they introduce this to their children right away.” By the time the children are ready to try to get into college, the parental anxiety -- as well as the child’s -- is often out of control. The Child Study Center recently introduced a workshop to help teens and their parents deal with the anxiety of applying for college.

In our society now, a child’s success in school has become emblematic of your success as a parent,” says Stearns. So if you have a kid who gets into (never mind graduates from) Harvard, that’s as good as a stellar (although long-awaited) performance review.

While over-anxious parenting may make us feel better in the short-term, says Carducci, there are long-term consequences. Over-anxious parents raise emotionally fragile kids -- kids who can’t stand on their own. They don’t know how to make sound decisions and they aren’t equipped to deal with failure and frustration.

“Frustration tolerance is the best predictor of self-esteem,” notes Carducci. When a child can endure failing, pick himself up and carry on, he gains strength and confidence. When he knows he’s done something on his own -– whether he succeeds or fails -- he’ll be proud of his effort.

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Charting Their Own Course

On the other hand, if a child is made to believe that he couldn't survive without his dad or mom bailing him out or somehow protecting him, it has the opposite result. Carducci says it sends a clear message to kids that they are incapable of success or decision-making without their parents. Furthermore, many professionals contend over parented kids are at a higher risk for anxiety disorders and depression. They also tend to have trouble charting their course later in life.

“Hot-house raised kids often need a period in which they need to wander later,” says Stearns. “This isn't bad necessarily, but it’s not how life used to be. Kids used to graduate college and then enter the workforce.” He sees the delayed growing up, where kids wander after college, as their way of reclaiming their childhood -- leading the less directed and controlled life that they probably should’ve had as youngsters.

Another impact, says Stearns, has been on something even less intangible. “Parenting has become less enjoyable and that’s really the shame,” says Stearns.

Dr. George Cohen, a clinical professor of pediatrics at George Washington University School of Medicine and a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics, says that while over parenting can be a problem, there’s also the good side of it –- at least the children are lucky enough to have parents who are vigilant and care, albeit perhaps a little too much. “Finding a happy medium -– parenting enough but not too much -- is sometimes easier said than done,” says Cohen.

It’s not even that people who over parent are fanatics necessarily. They’re more than likely just confused and uncertain. “A lot of times the reason some parents are overly anxious is because they don’t know what to do," he says. "They read one article and it tells them to do one thing, another article tells them to do the opposite. Parents often don’t know what to believe or where to turn."

A good pediatrician can do an anxious parent a world of good, according to Cohen. "Sometimes people can start out as an overanxious parent but as they become much more comfortable they strike a better balance," he says.

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Love Them the Way They Are

Nobody is suggesting that parenthood can or should be anxiety-free. What they are suggesting is that parents love their children for who they are, not what they want them to be. Most people don’t excel in every subject. So getting straight A's is probably more about what you want rather than a true reflection of your child’s abilities.

Also, allowing your child to fail, experience frustration and negotiate his or her own way in school and life –- suffering consequences and reaping the benefits -– is not only wise, it’s essential.

So next time you’re tempted to phone your child’s teacher because of a bad test score, ask yourself: Is this as important as I think it is? Remember, the world will continue to exist even if your child fails his French test. The idea is that you want to take the pressure off of yourself and allow your child to learn on his own as often as possible.            

DON'T STOP NOW!!

By Victoria Clayton  "Parents can feed a child's anxieties by the way they respond."

Contributor MSNBC
Updated: 6:50 a.m. ET Dec. 7, 2004
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/6620793/

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Year-Round Swimming

Obesity rates in children are rising across the board. One out of every ten preschoolers 10% is now overweight. Risks: Increase odds of becoming an obese adults; Type II diabetes; At risk for early heart disease; Likely to have elevated blood pressure; Good chance to be a target of systematic abuse and tormenting.

At the same time that children are eating more, they're also leading increasingly sedentary lives. Cause: T.V., DVD, Videos, Computer, and academic pressure.

Children that swim year-round make swimming and other forms of exercise a habit that will stick within their entire life. Swimming is especially well-suited for children because it results in fewer injuries than any other sport.

- A 1991 study found that the hundreds of thousands of young people enrolled in organized swim programs throughout the United States are thinner, stronger, and in better health than their non swimming peers. Participation in swimming programs also promotes self-discipline and responsibility and develops regular exercise habits that can benefit children throughout their lives.

- Scientific studies of infant swimming have shown that the early stimulation which swimming provides helps to develop the child in three key areas: Physically, Mentally, and Emotionally. As compared with a control group who did not take year-round lessons, the children who swam consistently from infancy were found to be significantly stronger and more coordinated. Muscles developed in a process similar to physical therapy, enabling the children to excel at all physical activities, which was not limited to swimming. Emotionally, children who swam year-round were found to be more self disciplined, motivated, and self-confident due to the constant goal setting, learning, and achievement, that goes on during lessons.

One of the best things you can do for your child to insure his/her success and
good health is to teach them to eat properly and help them get “hooked” on exercise.
Year-Round Swim lessons are a great place to start. 

Habit formation - the importance of catching them young

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Key Points
 
Obesity levels in the UK and here in the USA are rising, with more children gaining excess weight.

Obesity carries health risks, both in the short- and long-term, including heart disease, high blood pressure, and type 2 diabetes. In fact, some teenagers are now developing type 2 diabetes, a condition that used to only affect middle-aged people.

The good news is that experts believe that the trend can be reversed, through establishing healthy lifestyle habits in children at a young age.

The two main factors to focus on are diet and physical activity. Children's diets should be balanced and include plenty of fruit and vegetables, and they should have at least one hour of moderate exercise each day.

Childhood obesity levels are rising in the UK (as well as in the United States) and children today are significantly heavier than they were in previous decades. This is mainly due to children being less active than their predecessors and eating the wrong kinds of foods. This state of affairs could lead to serious health problems in the long-term. Yet, the key habits of maintaining good health - eating healthily and staying physically active - are established in childhood and parents can play a vital role in securing the future health of their children.

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Worrying Figures

Inactivity and obesity in children are growing problems in the UK. Recent figures gathered from various sources show an alarming rate of obesity and excess weight in children throughout the UK

The Health Development Agency (HDA) say, "Research shows up to 8.5 per cent of six year olds are obese," and figures published by NHS Quality Improvement Scotland in December 2003 show that more than a fifth of children in Scotland aged 3.5 years old are now overweight, obese or severely obese. In Northern Ireland there's a similar situation, and the Health Promotion Agency (HPA) say, "Research carried out by the Agency shows that a third of boys and a quarter of girls aged 12 carry excess weight."

Physical activity - how to help your children develop active habits for life

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Key Points

Being physically active is an important part of being healthy and starting early in life is beneficial.

There are numerous sports clubs and organizations available for children to join.

Don't push children who aren't into sports. Being active in general life, through walking, swimming, cycling or being out in the air, is good too.

By helping children to enjoy sports and active pursuits, the chances of them sticking with them for life are improved.
 
A key way to help your children to become healthy adults is to encourage an active lifestyle. Finding organized sporting activities that your children enjoy is ideal because they are likely to continue these pursuits in later life. However, not all children enjoy these kinds of activities, but they can have the same benefits by being physically active in other ways in their daily lives. For example, walking or using a bicycle to get to the shops or explore the local area will encourage regular activity.

"It's really important to set a good example," explained Anne-Marie. "So, if you're sitting on the sofa eating a box of chocolates and telling a child to get outside and run around the garden, that's not going to go down very well!"

A report produced for The Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health and the National Obesity Forum, states that, "Parents are important role models, particularly for younger children," and suggest an active lifestyle should be adopted by the whole family. Their idea of an active lifestyle is one where walking and cycling are prevalent, where there's active, enjoyable play and a decrease in TV viewing and other sedentary behaviors.

It's important to encourage your children to do sports and have active interests outside of school. There are loads of possible activities and lots of classes available, and you can start doing most things at any age. The younger the better. However, as many parents are aware, it does tend to boil down to having to spend time and sometimes money on it. 

If you want your children to have the best opportunity for success and good health, as all parents do, we have to pay the price! Addict your children to being physically active by developing an exercise habit as early as possible.

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Swimming Lessons, Swimming Ability, and the Risk of Drowning
       - Brenner, R.

I. THE ISSUE

An often advocated strategy for the prevention of drowning's is increasing swimming ability through some form of swimming instruction. However, few studies have examined the relationship between swimming ability and the risk of drowning and, there is no clear evidence that drowning rates are higher in poor swimmers. Some have even suggested that, at a population level, increased swimming proficiency might lead to an increase in drowning rates through increased exposure to water. (1-3) Among young children, swimming lessons could potentially reduce the natural fear of water many young children have and, as children become better swimmers, parents might tend to supervise their children less closely. Among older children and adults, better swimmers are likely to participate in more water-related activities and may feel confident enough to swim in higher risk settings, such as remote natural bodies of water with no lifeguards present.

II. ACQUISITION OF SWIMMING SKILLS AMONG YOUNG CHILDREN

A number of studies have examined the age at which young children can be taught to swim. Parker and Blanksby found that children who initiate swimming lessons at age 2- or 3- years achieve basic swimming skills at an average of 55 months of age; whereas, children who initiate swimming lessons at 4 years achieve the same skills at an average of 58 months of age. (4) Thus, in this study, the incremental benefit of starting children at younger ages was small. Erbaugh examined the effects of aquatic training on swimming performance of children ages 2.5-5.5 years. Twenty lessons were administered over an 8 month period to two groups of children.

The first group had received previous swimming instruction and the second group had no previous aquatic training. A third group of children, who also had no previous aquatic training, served as controls and did not receive training during the eight month study period. (5)

Results showed that returning children had better swimming performance than did starting children, and starting children performed better than the control group, suggesting that aquatic training improves swimming skills of new participants and that children are able to retain and build upon previously learned skills. A separate randomized trial examined the effects of swimming and water safety instructions on preschool children's ability to recover safely from a simulated episode of falling into a swimming pool. (6)

The intervention significantly improved swimming ability, ability to stand up in the shallow end when dropped from two feet above the water, and ability to jump from the edge of a pool into the pool and swim back to the side. The latter two skills were seen as measures of in-water safety skills that might simulate drowning risk, but their correlation with ability to survive in the water is unproven. (2,3)

All of these studies indicate that children can be taught basic swimming skills during the preschool years. However, none of the studies included children under 24 months, yet drowning rates in the U.S. and other developed countries are highest in children ages 12-23 months. (7,8) Furthermore, the studies did not address potential negative effects of swimming lessons, such as decreased parental vigilance, increased risk-taking behavior by the child following the intervention, or even water intoxication of very young children. Finally, for obvious ethical reasons, the studies could not duplicate realistic drowning scenarios.

III. SWIMMING ABILITY AMONG DROWNING VICTIMS AND IN THE GENERAL POPULATION

Children - Drowning Victims

Several studies have examined swimming ability among childhood drowning victims. A study in New Zealand examined the circumstances surrounding 36 consecutive swimming pool drowning's among children <5 years. (9) Information about enrollment in swimming lessons was available for 27 (75%) cases. Six cases (22%) had received some form of swimming instruction and, of these, one was reported to be a good swimmer, one could dog paddle, and one was described as being able to float well.

The other three children who had participated in swimming lessons were presumably non-swimmers, although this is not explicitly reported in the manuscript. Swimming ability also was not reported for the 21 drowning victims who had not participated in swimming lessons. A study of 111 childhood drowning's and serious non-fatal immersions (defined as an immersion in which respiration was altered, and the child was hospitalized) in Brisbane reported that, among childhood drowning victims ages 5 through 15 years; 20% could swim. (8,10)

Finally, in a study of saltwater drowning's and serious near-drowning's (defined as an immersion in which respiration was altered) among children <16 years of age, 30% of immersions were reportedly among children who were able to swim. (11) Children - Population Surveys Swimming ability among children in the general population has been examined through survey data collected in the U.S. and in Australia. A study published in 1977, surveyed 9,420 children in two communities in South Carolina who were in grades 2 through 7 (approximately ages 7 through 13 years). (12) In this study 25% of white males, 33% of white females, 60% of black males, and 78% of black females reported an inability to swim in deep water.

Data regarding drowning's in the same state demonstrated that rates were highest in black males, followed by white males, black females, and lowest in white females. Thus, the relationship between swimming ability and drowning rates was not consistent. A more recent study in New Jersey found that swimming ability increased with age.

The percentage of parents reporting any level of swimming competence in their children increased from <20% for children under two years of age to over 80% for children over eleven years. (13) This study also found that white children were reportedly stronger swimmers than non-white children of the same age. Similarly an Australian school based survey of children ages 5 through 15 years found that swimming ability increased with age with 33% of 5 year olds being able to swim 10 meters, increasing to > 90% of those over 10 years of age. (14)

Children - Case-Control Studies

We are aware of only one study that has attempted to examine swimming ability among childhood drowning victims and in a comparable population at risk for drowning. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission conducted a study in eight counties in the U.S. in 1986. 15 Information about swimming ability was gathered through interviews with families of children <5 years of age who drowned in a residential pool and through interviews with families of children of comparable age who lived in homes with pools. A total of 42 drowning's, 102 near drowning's (submersion resulting in a visit to an emergency department), and 68 control children were included in the study. Data were available for analysis for 104 of the submersion victims and 65 controls.

Although the authors suggest that swimming ability decreased the risk of submersion injury and that this effect was greater for older children, there were several limitations to the study and analyses. The authors report “we have not calculated the relative impact of swimming ability on accident risk because of possible biases in the variable.” (16) Information about participation in swimming lessons was not obtained.

Adults - Drowning Victims

In Canada swimming ability was known for 45 of 64 (70%) recreational drowning victims >15 years. (16) Of these, only 14 (31%) were reported to be weak or non-swimmers. Two studies in the U.S. reported swimming ability among drowning victims of all ages combined. However, incomplete documentation and reported biases in these two studies preclude meaningful interpretation of the data. (17, 18)

Adults - Population Surveys

A 1994 nationally representative survey in the U.S. reported swimming ability of persons over 18 years of age, by age, race, and gender. (19) Similar to patterns observed in children, males reported themselves to be better swimmers than females yet drowning rates are higher for males than females. Percentages reporting limited swimming ability were as follows: white women- 45%; white men - 17%; African American women - 77%; African American men - 44%. In a separate survey conducted in the U.S. in 1991, men were more likely than women to rate themselves as excellent or very good swimmers. (20)

Gender differences in self-rated swimming ability were greatest among the subset who had not taken swimming lessons. Men were also more likely to say they could swim continuously for half a mile or more. However, in this same survey, males self-reported greater exposure to water as well as greater high risk exposures such as swimming alone, swimming in natural bodies of water, or drinking alcohol during an aquatic activity. This finding supports the notion that persons who perceive themselves to be strong swimmers, may engage in higher risk water-related activities.

IV.  PAST AND PRESENT RECOMMENDATIONS

Recommendations to teach children to swim date back to biblical times. According to the Talmud, parents are obligated to teach their children how to swim. (12) Swimming was part of the required curriculum for Greek and Roman boys and Caesar decreed that “every soldier in his army be able to swim and pass a swimming test”. (21)

Currently there appears to be little controversy regarding recommendations to teach older children how to swim. Policies of the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that after the age of 5 years, all children learn how to swim. (22,23) A number of organizations have developed standardized swimming curriculums. For example the learn-to-swim program of the U.S. Red Cross teaches swimming skills beginning at age 6 years and public high schools in Hawaii require students to complete a drown-proofing course. (24)

Recommendations for swimming lessons for younger children are more controversial. A recent policy statement by the American Academy of Pediatrics states that “Children are generally not developmentally ready for formal swimming lessons until after their fourth birthday.” (25)

Programs like that of the American Red Cross and the YMCA focus on aquatic adjustment and swimming readiness skills while other programs attempt to teach water survival skills. Still, aquatic programs for infants and toddlers are very popular. While there are no exact figures on the number of preschool children enrolled in formal swimming lessons, in the United States it is estimated that between 5 to 10 million preschoolers are enrolled per year, i.e. over 25% of the preschool population. (25)

Current broad interest in the topic of swimming instruction for infants and toddlers is exemplified by the list of 19 speakers representing 14 different countries at the 6th World Aquatic Babies Congress to be held in Argentina in October 2001 and at other sites thereafter. (26)   

Note: Starfish is a member of this organization and Ann Shilder is recognized by this organization as being one of the best infant-swimming instructors.

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References

1. Robertson LS. Injuries: Causes, Control Strategies, and Public Policy. Lexington, MA, Lexington Books, 1983.
2. Smith GS. Drowning prevention in children: the need for new strategies. Injury Prevention.1995;1:216-217
3. Barss P. Cautionary notes on teaching water safety skills. Injury Prevention. 1995:1;218-219.
4. Parker HE, Blanksby BA. Starting age and aquatic skill learning in young children: Mastery of prerequisite water confidence and basic aquatic locomotion skills. Aust J Sci Med Sport. 1997;29:83-87.
5. Erbaugh SJ. Effects of aquatic training on swimming skill development of preschool children. Perceptual and Motor Skills. 1986;62:439-446.
6. Asher KN, Rivara FP, Felix D, Vance L, Dunne R. Water safety training as a potential means of reducing risk of young children’s drowning. Injury Prevention. 1995;1:228-233.
7. Brenner R, Smith G, Overpeck M. Divergent trends in childhood drowning rates -U.S. 1971-1988. JAMA. 1994:271:1606-1608
8. Pearn J, Nixon J. Wilkey I. Freshwater drowning and near-drowning accidents involving children: A five-year total population study. Med J Aust. 1976;2:942-946.
9. Hassall IB. Thirty-six consecutive under 5 year old domestic swimming pool drownings. Aust Paediatr J. 1989;25:143-146.
10. Pearn J, Nixon J. Prevention of childhood drowning accidents. Med J Aust. 1977;1:616-618.
11. Patrick P, Bint M, Pearn J. Saltwater drowning and near-drowning accidents involving children. Med J Aust. 1979;1:61-64.
12. Schuman SH, Rowe JR, Glazer HM, Redding JS. Risk of drowning: An iceberg phenomenon. JACEP. 1977;6:139-143.
13. Fife D, Goldoft M. Swimming capabilities and swimming exposure of New Jersey Children. J SafetyRes. 1994;25:159-165.
14. Nixon JW, Pearn JH, Dugdale AE. Swimming ability of children: A survey of 4000 Queensland children in a high drowning region. Med J. Aust. 1979;2:271-272.
15. Rogers GB. Factors contributing to child drownings and near-drownings in residential swimming pools. Human Factors. 1989;31:123-132.
16. Barss P. in collaboration with the The Canadian Red Cross. National Drowning Report. Visual Surveillance Report:2000 Edition. The Canadian Red Cross Society, 2000. Ottawa, Ontario.
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