Summer time is here and so is the best outdoor activity there possibly was, swimming! New parents are excited about taking their little one’s to the beach or the pool, but it can also be scary when it comes to water safety. Here are some pool and water safety tips for you and your family to keep in mind this summer! Happy splashing!

Water Safety Tips For The Beach 

Whenever you take your munchkins to the beach, and you know they are going to want to get wet, you should test out the water first.

• Walk in the water to see how far the shallow part goes, show your kids where they need to STOP
• See how big the waves are coming in and feel the strength of the pull-back
• Go to a beach with an on-duty life guard
• Have your kids wear life jackets or some kind of floating device in case they do get pulled in and need help floating up to the surface to get help
• Make a game with the waves by lifting your little munchkin in the air every time they think the wave will hit them
• Have them help dig (a very shallow) hole near the water…think kiddy pool size. That way they can use their sand pails to pour in water, or let the waves naturally fill it. Now you have your own private pool and they are learning about tides and science through a fun activity!

In case of ever getting caught in a riptide – Always swim parallel to the beach. Think of riptide as tunnels, if you swim parallel you will “exit the tunnel” and be able to swim back to shore. Trying to swim forward will just tire you out, and it wont work. Swimming diagonally will slowly get you closer to the sand. Teaching your kids about this safety tactic is super important, as rip-tides are obviously harder for children to escape because they are smaller and not as strong as adults.

Water Safety Tips For The Pool

Pools can be such a blessing when it comes to the summer heat. But if you’re a new parent, accidental drownings and pool injuries will be you number one fear. Here are some good safety tips.

• Use life jackets or arm floats (but don’t let this excuse the fact that you should still hold them in the pool and teach them to swim)
• Purchase pool floats that they can sit in, and you can hold onto.
• Swim lessons are a great investment to get them comfortable in the water.
• Make sure only adults know how to open the gate to the pool…and…get a gate if you don’t have one.
• If you’re at a party, rotate a designated “adult watcher”- that way there is always supervision on pool activities.
• Keep a first-aid kit nearby, you don’t want to waste any time by having to run back into the house.

Laurie Smith, who blogs for the Ultimate Pool Guide, suggests purchasing anti-slip mats because, lets be honest, we can tell our children to not run around the pool, but sometimes the excitement of a game or the yearning to jump off of a diving board won’t remind the little rascals that they can seriously get injured if they run.

“One of the easiest ways to reduce minor pool mistakes is to get anti-slip mats for your pool area or patio. Although, getting it for the entire area surrounding the pool is ideal, the costs can quickly add up. Buy 2-3 mats, 1 for each major exit/entrance point to your pool to prevent slipping. You’ll save a few bucks on band-aids, and you can prevent a lot of nasty scrapes that can be a result of running around the swimming pool.”

Slipping near a pool can be super dangerous, so please, makes sure your kids understand that they need to walk and invest in Lauri’s suggestion of anti-slip pool mats.

What are some of your favorite water safety tips? Share in the comments!