5 Water Safety Skills Every Child Should Learn | Swim Development Australia

Water safety for kids is about much more than simply knowing how to swim. Children need to develop practical swimming skills, water awareness and confidence so they can respond appropriately when they are in or around water.

Whether your child is a baby taking their first steps in the pool or an older child developing their swimming technique, learning water safety skills from an early age can help build safer habits around swimming pools, beaches and other aquatic environments.

At Swim Development Australia, we believe that learning to swim and learning water safety go hand in hand.

Here are five important water safety skills every child should work towards developing.

1. Floating

Floating is one of the most important foundations of learning to swim.

A child who can float and remain calm in the water is developing an important survival skill. Learning to float helps children understand their body's natural buoyancy and can give them time to regain control if they unexpectedly enter the water.

For younger children, floating should be introduced gradually and positively. Some children may initially feel uncomfortable lying on their back in the water, so it is important not to rush the process.

Swimming instructors can help children become comfortable with floating through games, gentle encouragement and age-appropriate activities.

Why floating matters:

• Helps children become comfortable in the water

• Develops body awareness and balance

• Builds water confidence

• Provides an important foundation for other swimming skills

• Helps children learn how to remain calm in the water

Floating is also an important foundation for progressing towards more advanced swimming and survival skills.

2. Learning to Control Their Breathing

Breath control is another important part of a child's swimming development.

Children need to become comfortable putting their face in the water and controlling their breathing as they progress through their learn-to-swim journey.

For babies and young children, this should always be taught in an age-appropriate and gentle way. The goal is to help children become familiar with water rather than making them fearful of it.

As children develop, they can learn skills such as:

• Blowing bubbles in the water

• Putting their face in the water

• Turning their head to breathe

• Coordinating breathing with swimming movements

• Remaining calm when water reaches their face

Good breath control can make swimming more comfortable and help children progress towards independent swimming.

Most importantly, children should never be forced underwater. Swimming skills should be introduced according to the child's individual readiness and development.

3. Safe Entry and Exit From the Water

Knowing how to get into the water is useful, but knowing how to get out safely is just as important.

Children should gradually learn appropriate ways to enter and exit different swimming environments under adult supervision.

Depending on their age, ability and the swimming environment, this may include learning to:

• Enter the pool safely

• Hold onto the pool edge

• Move towards the edge

• Turn around and find the wall

• Pull themselves towards a safe exit point

• Follow pool entry and exit rules

These skills can become particularly important if a child accidentally enters the water.

However, parents should remember that swimming skills never replace active adult supervision. Royal Life Saving Australia recommends that children are actively supervised whenever they are in, on or around water. For young children, this means staying within arm's reach and giving them your full attention.

4. Learning to Move Through the Water

Swimming is not just about learning a particular stroke. Children need to develop the ability to move themselves through the water.

Early swimming lessons may introduce skills such as:

• Kicking

• Paddling

• Reaching

• Gliding

• Rolling

• Changing direction

• Coordinating arms and legs

• Swimming short distances

These skills gradually come together as children become stronger and more coordinated.

For example, a child might first learn to kick while holding onto the pool edge. They may then progress to kicking with a flotation aid before eventually combining kicking with arm movements.

This gradual progression is one reason regular swimming lessons for children can be so valuable. Skills are introduced step by step rather than expecting a child to master everything at once.

5. Knowing What to Do if They Get Into Trouble

One of the most important parts of child water safety is helping children understand what to do if something doesn't go according to plan.

Children should learn simple, age-appropriate responses such as:

Stop → Stay Calm → Float → Find the Edge → Call for Help

The exact response will depend on the child's age, swimming ability and the situation.

For example, if a child unexpectedly falls into the pool, being able to remain calm, float and move towards the pool edge can be extremely valuable.

Children should also learn basic water safety rules, including:

• Never enter the pool without permission from an adult.

• Never run around the pool.

• Follow pool rules.

• Never swim alone.

• Tell an adult if another child is in trouble.

• Stay away from water when an adult is not supervising.

• Ask for help when they are unsure.

Teaching these rules repeatedly helps children develop water awareness as well as swimming ability.

Swimming Skills Are Important — But Supervision Is Essential

One of the most important messages for parents is that being able to swim does not mean a child is completely safe around water. Children can overestimate their swimming ability, and conditions can change quickly.

Swim Development Australia identifies active supervision, restricting children's access to water, teaching water safety skills and knowing how to respond to an emergency as important layers of drowning prevention. This means parents should never rely on swimming lessons alone. A child may be a confident swimmer in a familiar swimming pool but encounter very different conditions at a beach, river, lake or unfamiliar pool.

Children should therefore continue to be supervised and should gradually learn about different aquatic environments as their skills and age develop.

Contact us today to find out more about our children's swimming lessons.