ATLANTA — Every student from an Atlanta elementary school learned to swim this summer thanks to efforts to protect children from drowning.
According to the CDC, drowning is the number one cause of death for children ages one to four. With summer winding down, students are down to their last opportunities for a trip to the lake or pool. Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and the YMCA are aware of the risks.
“The best way to prevent a drowning is to assure children have those essential skills, to understand how to behave safely, and to make sure parents understand the importance,” said Parker Lincoln, director of child advocacy at Children’s.
At the Morgan Oliver School, a small independent elementary school in Atlanta, most of the 27 students there had no swimming skills until the principal decided to do something about it.
“A lot of families had expressed anxiety about their kids around water, especially because we take a lot of field trips,” said Morgan Oliver Principal Sanidia Oliver-Stone.
At the East Lake YMCA, students learned to swim thanks to a program sponsored by Children’s.
“Little by little she just kept coming home saying ‘I did this today,’ ‘I did this today,’ ‘I pushed off, I jumped in,’” said Six-year-old Davina Martinez-Gregory’s mother.
Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s Strong4Life program paid for swim lessons for 800 children at YMCAs around metro Atlanta last year. Another 2,000 were taught how to stay safe around water.
“It was a really fun, engaging experience and really got them to a place where they felt comfortable around the water,” said Joe Ambley, executive director of the East Lake YMCA.
Meanwhile, Martinez-Gregory continues to gain confidence in the water.
“I got to do the starfish for the first time by myself,” she said proudly.
The girl's mom said she loves it so much she occasionally tries to play the role of swim instructor, providing tips for her 3-year-old little sister in an effort to keep the whole family safe around the water.