The Colony Aquatic Park is proud to participate in the World's Largest Swimming Lesson on June 20, an annual event that serves as a platform to help the aquatics community build awareness about the importance of teaching children to swim.
The World's Largest Swimming Lesson (WLSL), scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday, June 20, provides children and parents exposure to life-saving water safety skills and builds awareness about the vital importance of teaching children to swim to help prevent drowning. Program organizers are working to connect the dots between the real risk of childhood drowning and the need for basic water competency skills and crucial parental supervision to keep kids safe in and around the water. Research shows:
- The problem is life threatening for children: Per the World Health Organization, drowning is the third-leading cause of unintentional injury-related death, accounting for 7 percent of all injury-related deaths. In the United States, drowning remains the leading cause of injury related death for children ages 1-4, and the second leading cause for children under 14.
- Many lack basic swimming skills: In 2014, a survey completed by the American Red Cross found more than half of all Americans (54 percent) either can't swim or don't have all of the basic swimming skills.
- Parents don't recognize supervision is key: According to a 2016 Safe Kids Worldwide report, despite the fact that lack of supervision played a role in the majority of drowning deaths, less than half of parents (49 percent) indicate they remain within arms' reach of their child in the water.
However, there is reason to hope! Since the WLSL event launched in 2010, the Swimming Lessons Save Lives™ message has been shared with more than a billion people. Now in its 10th year, program organizers anticipate more than 600 facilities (including The Colony Aquatic Park) will host a WLSL event in more than 20 countries.
About The World's Largest Swimming Lesson
WLSL was created as a platform to build awareness about the fundamental importance of teaching children to swim to prevent drowning. Each year, WLSL events provide more than 20,000 man hours of water safety training in a single day. Since its inception, more than 278,000 children and adults in close to 50 countries have participated in WLSL lessons.