BOTETOURT CO., Va. – As families spend more time at pools, lakes and rivers this summer, instructors at the Botetourt Family YMCA are encouraging parents to prioritise swim lessons and water safety to help prevent drowning accidents.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 4 and the second-le
“Just by taking some lessons, a child is 88% less likely to experience a drowning,” Reedy said, citing a statistic from the National Institutes of Health.
The YMCA offers swim lessons year-round for children and adults, including adaptive swim lessons designed for younger children and those with disabilities or other unique needs.
Kathy Clubb, an adaptive swim instructor at the YMCA, said adaptive lessons focus on breaking larger swimming goals into smaller, achievable steps.
“That’s kind of the adaptive piece. It’s like we take the big skill that we want them to do and let’s just teach little skills at a time,” Clubb said.
Clubb said adaptive swim instruction can provide unique benefits for children with disabilities. For children who use wheelchairs, the water can offer a level of freedom and independence that may be difficult to achieve on land.
“If a child is in a wheelchair, once they have the chance to be in the water, they can use their arms, and they actually can experience freedom of movement, whereas typically that’s something that’s restricted for them,” Clubb said. “The water is a great way — it kind of evens the playing field.”
Lessons often focus on basic skills such as kicking, floating, arm movements and learning how to safely exit the water. Clubb said success is not always measured by how far a child can swim.
“Sometimes it’s about helping a child feel comfortable enough to get into the water at all,” she said.
While swim lessons can help build confidence and lifesaving skills, instructors say supervision remains critical.
“It only takes 10 to 30 seconds to experience a drowning,” Reedy said. “It’s important that parents, number one, keep their eyes up with their phones down.”
Instructors also recommend keeping young children within arm’s reach of an adult, using Coast Guard-approved life jackets in open water such as lakes and beaches, and teaching children what to do if they unexpectedly enter the water.
Clubb said practice outside of lessons is equally important.
“The biggest thing is for kids to practice,” she said. “For mom and dad to take the kids to the pool, to be with them in the water, teaching them, practicing what they’ve been learning in swim lessons.”
YMCA officials say swim lessons are available throughout the year, giving families opportunities to develop water safety skills before spending time around pools and open water during the summer months.
Other Places Offering Swim Lessons in Southwest Virginia
Families looking for swim lessons and water safety programs can also find opportunities at:
- Kirk Family YMCA — Roanoke
- Gainsboro Family YMCA — Roanoke
- Green Ridge Recreation Center — Roanoke County
- Aquatic Adventures Swim School — Roanoke County
- Christiansburg Aquatic Center — Christiansburg
- Downtown YMCA — Lynchburg
- Danville Family YMCA — Danville
- Radford Recreation Center — Radford
- Blacksburg Aquatic Center and Parks & Recreation programs — Blacksburg
- Salem Civic Center Aquatics programs — Salem
- Pulaski County Parks and Recreation swim programs — Pulaski County
- Virginia Gators Swim Club — Roanoke Valley
- Lynchburg Parks and Recreation aquatic programs — Lynchburg
Many local parks and recreation departments, YMCAs and private swim schools offer lessons for children, adults and individuals with special needs, as well as water safety courses, swim teams and aquatic fitness programs.