As the thermometer begins to rise and the nearly month-long rain starts to dwindle, parents and children are beginning to flock to city public pools to stay cool.
While everyone wants to have fun in the sun hanging out at the pools, the city’s Department of Parks & Recreation offers a number of free courses – to both children and adults – that focus on water safety.
One of the free programs that Parks offers is the “Learn to Swim” program designed for children ages 6 to 14.
“The aim of the program is to make children safer in and around the water by teaching them to learn to swim,” said John Hutchins, Director of Citywide Aquatics for the Department of Parks & Recreation.
Hutchins said approximately 5,000 individuals across the country drowned last year, and approximately one in four of those drowning deaths involved children between the ages of 1 and 14. In addition, for every child that dies, there are four submerges or emergencies involving children, according to Hutchins.
In addition to teaching them basic swimming skills, the instructors who run the classes also talk to the children about fundamentals of water safety, including knowing the depths of the water they are in, always making sure there is a lifeguard on duty when swimming and wearing a flotation device when needed.
“We want them to learn the basic swimming and safety skills to make them safety aware,” Hutchins said.
The free “Learn to Swim” program has three summer sessions – one of which is currently taking place – that are available on a first-come, first-served basis at four pools in Queens. The pools in Astoria, as well as Fort Totten, Fisher and Liberty pools will all begin their second session of the program on July 24. It will end on August 8. Registration will take place on July 23 beginning at 9 a.m. at the individual pools.
Last year the “Learn to Swim” program serviced more than 14,000 kids during the summer, and this year Parks has already seen 6,000 kids participate in the first session, according to Hutchins.
However, Parks officials are not just concerned about making the summer fun for kids – they also have a number of programs available to seniors. In addition to teaching seniors how to swim, they also offer water ballet – a free popular program that takes place at the Astoria pool on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
“It’s a lot of fun for the seniors to get involved,” Hutchins said. “It’s also social too [so the] seniors can get together and have a great time.”
Another popular activity for the seniors is water exercise, which takes place at the Astoria location from 11:10 to 11:50 a.m. on Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays.
“We used to go to the beach, but this is so convenient, it’s right there,” said Astoria resident James Massalin during a recent class at the Astoria pool. “It’s easy on your joints, your knees. I have arthritis in both knees. It’s difficult walking regularly, but in here [the pool] it’s easier. Water in general makes it feel better.”
For more information regarding these programs, call Parks Citywide Aquatics at 718-760-6969 or log onto https://www.nycgovparks.org/facilities/pools.
With additional reporting by Beth Salzman.
To read more about the Learn to Swim program click here
To read more about the Senior Splash program click here
