Young children sit on the pool edge, listening to an instructor demonstrating in the water.

Safety Around Water

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Safety Around Water

The YMCA’s Safety Around Water program is a 5-week, skills-based initiative designed to teach essential water safety to local third-grade students. Through a partnership with area schools, students are transported to the Grand Traverse Bay YMCA – West facility to participate in 45-minute lessons led by certified swim instructors.

The Y’s Safety Around Water program is the first step in equipping children with essential water safety skills. Here are some features that help set these sessions apart from traditional swim lessons: 

  • Begin with Basics: Sessions start by focusing on basic skills to move on top and under the water. This includes floating, blowing bubbles, submerging face and body, jumping into the water and resurfacing, swimming on front, swimming on back and treading water.
     
  • Jump, Push, Turn, Grab: Children will learn this specific technique, which includes pushing off the bottom of the pool as you are submerging to get back up to the surface while turning to grab the side of the pool.
     
  • Swim, Float, Swim: Kids will also learn how to swim a short distance on your front, roll over to your back to rest, and then roll on your front to continue swimming to safety.
     
  • Reach or Throw, Don’t Go: To prepare for a situation where someone else may be at risk of drowning, kids will learn the concepts of this technique. This includes the importance of reaching for them without jumping in, throwing in floatation devices and not attempting to rescue the person by jumping in the water.
     

While the program is built on proven techniques to reduce the risk of drowning, every session also includes fun, engaging activities that help reinforce safety skills in an encouraging environment.

Through this program—and hundreds of additional youth and adult swim lessons across multiple locations—the Grand Traverse Bay YMCA is committed to reducing drowning rates and building a stronger, safer Northern Michigan community.

Learning That Saves Lives

In just five weeks, students in the Grand Traverse Bay YMCA’s Safety Around Water program show measurable growth in critical water safety skills—from floating and treading water to recognizing how to help others in distress. 

  • Face in Water: ↑ 51% increase (from 43% to 94%)
  • Back Float: ↑ 61% increase (from 22% to 83%)
  • Tread Water: ↑ 48% increase (from 28% to 76%)
  • Swim 10 Feet: ↑ 52% increase (from 29% to 81%)
  • Reach, Throw, Don’t Go: ↑ 67% increase (from 33% to 100%)

Help Keep Kids Safe—Support Safety Around Water

Drowning is one of the leading causes of accidental death in children, but it’s also preventable. The Grand Traverse Bay YMCA’s Safety Around Water program is offered completely free to local schools, thanks to the generosity of donors like you. Your support helps us provide life-saving swim instruction—ensuring that every child, regardless of background or income, has the chance to learn critical water safety skills. Give today and help us make sure every child in Northern Michigan has the tools to stay safe around water.

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