Water Safety Workshop for Parents and Caregivers

Learning objectives

By the end of this lesson, participants will be able to:

• Explain why young children drown at home and during non-swim time, and name the layers of protection that prevent it.
• Find and fix at least three water hazards in their own home.
• Practice being a Water Watcher, including touch supervision and a clean handoff.
• Know when swim lessons can start and why lessons don't replace supervision or life jackets.
• Know what to do first in a water emergency and where to learn CPR with rescue breaths.

Materials

• Projector or a printed copy of the key facts (in the Background section)
• One Home Water Safety Checklist, Water Watcher card and Emergency Action Plan per family
• A U.S. Coast Guard-approved child life jacket and a pair of water wings, for show and tell
• Pens, name tags (first names only), and a sheet listing local swim lesson and CPR options you looked up in advance
• If your group speaks another language, a bilingual co-presenter

Lesson steps

1. Welcome and why it matters 10 minutes

   Introduce yourself and the goal: Leave tonight with three changes you can make at home this week. Share the CDC fact that drowning is the leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 4, then turn straight to what works: layers of protection. Draw five layers on the board: barriers and alarms, supervision, swimming skills, life jackets, and emergency preparation.

2. Activity 1: Room-by-room hazard hunt 15 minutes

   Pairs walk through their own home in their heads using the Home Water Safety Checklist. Each pair circles three hazards and writes the fix next to each. Share a few out loud.

   • Bathroom: a baby is never alone in the tub, even for a moment; toilet lid locks; the bathroom door stays latched.

   • Kitchen, laundry and yard: buckets, coolers, kiddie pools and rain-filled bins are emptied and turned over right after use.

   • Doors to water: locks and alarms out of a child's reach on any door that leads to a pool, pond or yard with water.

   • Pools and hot tubs: a four-sided fence with a self-closing, self-latching gate; a locked cover on the hot tub; no floating cover that a child could slip under.

3. Activity 2: Be the Water Watcher 10 minutes

   Ask a volunteer to watch a 'pool' (a spot on the floor) while you try to distract them with a phone, a question and a plate of food. Then hand them a Water Watcher card and practice a clean handoff: I'm handing you the card. You're watching the water until 3:20.

   • For babies, toddlers and weak swimmers: touch supervision, an adult who can swim within arm's reach.

   • For everyone else: one named Water Watcher whose only job is watching, with no phone, no cooking and no alcohol.

   • Swap watchers every 15 to 20 minutes by passing the card.

   • Lifeguard on duty? Keep watching anyway.

4. Activity 3: Swim lessons and life jackets 10 minutes

   Show the life jacket and the water wings. Ask: Which one is a safety device? Then cover swim lessons.

   • Water wings, floaties and inflatable toys can deflate and don't prevent drowning. A properly fitted Coast Guard-approved life jacket is the safety device.

   • The AAP says swim lessons can start for many children at age 1, depending on readiness, and does not recommend infant swim programs under age 1.

   • Lessons lower risk but don't make a child 'drown proof'; supervision and barriers still matter.

   • Hand out the local swim lesson options you found and the Swim Lesson Questions sheet.

5. Activity 4: Your emergency plan 10 minutes

   Families start the Emergency Action Plan together. Walk through the first moves.

   • If a child is missing, check the water first. Seconds count.

   • Shout for help and call 911 (or have someone else call).

   • Help without going in: reach with a pole or throw something that floats.

   • Learn CPR with rescue breaths from a certified course. Drowning is a breathing emergency. Hand out the CPR class options you found.

6. Assessment: Three changes 5 minutes

   Each person writes three changes they'll make this week on the back of their checklist and keeps it. Ask for a show of hands: Who found a hazard tonight they hadn't thought of? Use the quick check questions below if time allows.

7. Take-home

   Each family leaves with the Home Water Safety Checklist, a Water Watcher card, the Emergency Action Plan and the Swim Lesson Questions sheet, plus a link to make a family water safety plan online.