Dive into pool safety (Developing Talents)

Each year since I've been doing activity days, we have a pool day and the girls just LOVE it. I used to be a lifeguard and swim teacher so naturally, I love the pool too. We spend the first part of it talking about pool safety and then the second part letting the girls play and do whatever they want. This year we must have scheduled poorly cause not many girls could make it... it was a little more fun and less instruction. Here are a few of the pool safety things I did go over:

• If you ever see someone drowning and you cannot touch the bottom, DO NOT go in after them. No matter how nice of a person they are, they will use you as a floatation device. What you do is throw something to them... right next to them so they can grab on. In a situation where you have something you can reach to them and pull them to the side, you get on your stomach by the pool deck and then reach it to them so they don't pull hard and you end up in the pool. The girls practiced saving each other a few times
• We talked about the importance of knowing how to float. If they were ever stranded in water... the best way to save energy is to float. First we had them jump in the pool from the side and then get onto thier backs. Then since they all have younger siblings I told them to go home and teach thier younger siblings to do that. Then we had a floating contest.
• Last year I went into a little bit of CPR and rescue breathing... this year I could tell they just weren't in the mood. Bottom line: always get help from 911... especially around a pool deck. Then here are the basics: If someone isn't breathing and they have a pulse, they need rescue breathing. If they aren't breathing and they don't have a pulse, they need CPR. The American Red Cross and take it from here.

Then the girls had races, I helped them a little with thier strokes :)

If you are feeling particularly excited for this activity like me... you can send out invitations, found HERE.