Get your little ones excited about swimming with Red Cross Swim

Topics: National, Water Safety
September 18, 2012

Get your little ones excited about swimming with Red Cross Swim

Can you remember how old you were when you first learned how to swim? From exploring the water with a relative to setting out on your own for your very first lap around the pool, swimming is a classic and beloved recreational activity enjoyed by people of all ages.

Each year, Red Cross Swim - which is offered through the Canadian Red Cross - trains 1.2 million Canadians on the fundamental aspects of swimming and water safety. No matter what age your children are, the classes offered by this program can be a wonderful way to encourage them to use their imaginations in a range of fun water-based games and activities.

Red Cross Swim Preschool can give your youngest children the tools to succeed in the water. Geared toward children from four months to six years-old, this program utilizes songs and games to engage children and get them animated about learning the fundamentals of swimming.

Broken up into eight levels and featuring different mascots for each stage, Red Cross Swimming and Water Safety Instructors are on-hand to help your child every step of the way.! The first three levels - referred to as Starfish, Duck and Sea Turtle - help get children comfortable in the water and aware of water safety basics, while later levels allow kids to build on those skills in energetic ways.

One of the great advantages of training your children at an early age is that it can help build the foundation for a healthy lifestyle and safe habits around the water. Classes offered through Red Cross Swim can help your children enhance balance, coordination and rhythmic and speed skills which could allow them to perform at a higher athletic level later in life.

In addition, swimming is a fun form of exercise that can boost the fitness levels of your children and improve circulation and respiration, as well as bone and joint strength. Best of all, because swimming is communal, your whole family can get involved in an afternoon of splashing around in the water and can build lifelong memories.

While teaching children how to swim at a young age poses no significant risk for developing serious medical conditions, certain things can limit a child's ability to safely enjoy the water. If your son or daughter has an ear infection, irritated eyes or is suffering from a cold or flu, you should avoid letting them swim as this could exacerbate the condition.

For more information about how to get your children involved in Red Cross Swim, please visit the website or head to your local Red Cross office to learn more!

Section Widgets