Kids Learn Water Safety at These Swim Schools in Orange County

As summer approaches, parents with small children begin to worry about backyard pool safety. I know how they feel. My youngest daughter was terrified of pools. I tried group lessons, private lessons in a neighbor's pool, but all she would do was scream and dig her nails into the poor instructor. I even tried having a friend teach her but to no avail. Finally at the age of 4, we found a school that not only taught our daughter to swim but also swim survival skills. It's imperative that parents of small children, or even older, introduce them to swimming as well as water survival skills. According to the Orange County Fire Authority, drownings are the number one cause of accidental deaths in children under the age of 5. Check out the following list of swim schools that will meet that need.

Watersafe Swim School
Watersafe Swim School was the school we stumbled upon for our daughter. Owner Ginny Flahive encourages parents to start swim lessons as soon as possible, even as young as 1 month. Often asked why start so young and the school's thought is that "the behaviors of automatic breath holding and swimming movements begin to fade as early as 3 months of age. Exposure to swimming provides the ideal exercise. They are not restricted to gravity and benefit from the cardiovascular exercise it provides. It gives babies a head start in learning basic swimming skills and improves bilateral coordination and balance." I remember seeing infants while my 4 year old was having her lessons. The instructors teach them through gentle persuasion how to float on their back. A basic water survival skill. No child should be considered completely water safe, adult supervision is a must when children are near water.

Watersafe Swim School Orange County locations:
345 10th Street
Seal Beach, California 90740
(562) 596-8608

Yorba Linda Country Club
345 10th Street
19400 Mountain View Avenue
Yorba Linda, California 92886
(714) 612-1592

Heritage Oak Private School
16971 Imperial Highway
Yorba Linda, California 92886
(714) 612-1592

Aqua Wave Swim School
Marla Blauman, CEO of Aqua Wave Swim school, has been instructing students for over 40 years. All instructors are taught the WaveSmart technique which teaches students to overcome their fear of water, fear of falling and fear of suffocation. This technique teaches children to be comfortable in the water. The school also focuses on teaching swimmers the basic float. A technique that proves invaluable in saving young lives who accidentally fall into water.

Aqua Wave Swim School, Orange County location
27025 Burbank Road
Foothill Ranch, California 92610
(949) 455-2535

Swim Safe Swim School
Swim Safe Swim School offers many swimming opportunities for your child. Multiple lessons for different age groups as well as private, semi-private and group lessons (3-5 students) make scheduling easy for busy parents. In business since 1993, the school is located in a new indoor facility that provides a wonderful environment for year-round lessons.

Swim Safe Swim School, Orange County location
1722 E. Rose Avenue
Orange, CA 92867
(714) 538-7946

Sources:
http://www.watersafe.com/orangeregister.html#
www.ocfa.org