I know ... I have spent money wisely

I remember learning to swim as a child. Today swimming is just a natural, automatic thing I do when I am in water. My body takes over and knows what to do and how to move. It's not something I need to think about.


Living in an island state, which is part of a bigger island, I think knowing how to manage, should you come into contact with water is important. As much as you might think that the drowning stats would be on the improve, the National Drowning Report which can be viewed on The Royal Lifesaving website has some pretty startling figures. Some of which are:

315 people drowned in Australia between

1 July 2010 and 30 June 2011.

241 (77%) were male and 71 (23%) female.

Sex was unknown in three cases.

107 (34%) drowning deaths occurred in NSW,

93 (30%) in Queensland.

38 (12%) people drowned in the Queensland

floods throughout December and January.

114 (36%) drowning deaths occurred in River /

Creek / Stream locations.

16% (50) of drowning deaths occurred while

Swimming and Recreating in water.

15% (47) of drowning deaths occurred as a

result of Falling or Wandering into water.

Drowning deaths occurred all year round

with 129 (41%) occurring in Summer. There

were 2 cases where season of drowning

I know that I have had a lifetime of enjoyment from swimming. As a recreational activity as well as a physical activity I have benefited from knowing how to swim.

As a parent, I think it is money well spent to have my kids attend Learn to Swim classes.

Both of my children have already experienced swim classes. Miss 7 started in the pool as therapy for her post hip dislocation treatment. It was just natural that we followed on from these with classes. She has always been hesitant around water, and sometimes, you could say she was full-on freaking out. I feel much more confident when she is near water now that she has a better understanding of the risks and what she can do to help herself.

Master 4 entered the pool with water orientation classes when he was 6 months old. I must say, the parent and baby time in the pool is a great bonding experience. Unlike Miss 7, Master 4 is over-confident around water. It was just as important for him to gain swimming skills.


After a small break from classes, they are both back in the pool. From the first lesson I can see the joy on their faces from the enjoyment they get out of swimming, I can see the boost in confidence and  I can feel the reassurance as a parent.

Joining yay for home