As summer approaches, keeping kids safe in the pool or beach is most important.
For two weeks, kindergarten teacher, Ms. Clara Uribe, is cheering her students as they kick their way through water safety lessons provided by Broward’s SWIM Central program.
“We have so much water in South Florida,” she said. “And a lot of these children haven’t had any kid of exposure to water or a pool, or even the beach.”
But now, Uribe’s class is kicking their way through two weeks of water safety lessons thanks to Broward’s SWIM Central program.
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For ten days, the four and five-year-olds spend 30 minutes in the pool.
According to the CDC, Florida ranked 5th in the U.S. for unintentional drowning deaths with an age-adjusted rate of 2.2 per 100,000 population, behind Alaska, Hawaii, Montana, and Louisiana for all ages in 2020.
“This program is definitely saving lives,” said SWIM Central Senior Coordinator, Jay Sanford. "We lose 80 kids a year in the state of Florida, that’s four kindergarten classes full of kids.”
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Sanford told NBC6's Moms With a Mic water safety is about building confidence, but also about learning limitations.
“We want them to get a healthy understanding of what water is, what it can do, how it can be great, as well as recognize, ‘maybe I don’t want to jump in the pool when there’s nobody watching. Maybe I want to stay out of that canal… because I know that’s not gonna be safe,’” Sanford said.
SWIM Central is open to Broward elementary schools for Pre-K through 2nd grade and ESE students.
Lessons are free during the school day and students can either walk or ride a bus to a nearby pool for the lessons.
Since 2000, Sanford said some 600,000 kids have gone through the program.
After two weeks, the goal is for Uribe’s students to jump into the pool, turn around, and swim back to the wall on their own.
“They’re doing fantastic,” Uribe said with pride.
“If we can teach the kids water is great, but you have to respect it, and you have to be safe around it, then we’ve really accomplished something that’s gonna help save lives," Sanford said.
To learn more about SWIM Central in Broward, contact your child’s elementary school, or call 954-357-SWIM.
Miami-Dade County offers swimming lessons year-round for ages 2 and up.
For more information, click here.
Miami-Dade County is also offering a Summer Safety Splash Event on Saturday, May 13th from 10am-1pm at Wilbur B. Bell Park. Call 305-663-6800 for more information.
