Schools across the state are continuing to support students with additional needs to learn about water safety, with support from local swim-school teachers and Life Saving Victoria (LSV).
One school doing a great job helping students to learn vital water-safety skills is Burwood East Special Development School.
While the school does not have its own on-site aquatic facilities, it works in partnership with the swimming teachers at Ashburton Pool and Recreation Centre to teach students about water safety.
As teacher Song Yuan Chia explained, it is important to help students understand the risks around water and that they know what to do when faced with such a situation.
'We use water-based activities to assess students' confidence and competencies, then form small groups based on their ability,' Song Yuan said.
'Some students participate in lessons that aim to further develop their skills and competencies, whereas others focus on becoming familiar with being submerged in water as well as moving and floating in the water.'
Inclusive beach programs for students of all abilities
LSV is helping students of all ability levels transfer water-safety skills they develop in a controlled pool to the open-water environment.
Earlier this year, LSV held the first in a series of interschool inclusive beach programs, with students from Heatherwood Specialist School, Dandenong Valley Special Development School and Emerson School.
The students visited Hampton Life Saving Club for a 2-hour session learning valuable water-safety skills, using lifejackets, paddle boards and practising rescues with tubes, towels, ropes and even bike helmets.
The students also enjoyed socialising and playing beach soccer, beach sprints and beach cricket together. To their delight, the students even became TV stars, when Channel 9 aired a segment on the weekend news that celebrated the success of the program.
To learn more about LSV's Inclusive Beach Program and make a booking, please complete an expression of interest.
Find out more
These resources from LSV are available to help with classroom water-safety activities:
For more ideas about teaching your students about swimming and water safety, refer to Life Saving Victoria.
For further enquiries, contact the statewide swimming coordinator, Targeted School Services unit:
- phone: 03 4334 0523
- email: school.swimming@education.vic.gov.au
You can also contact LSV:
- phone: 03 9676 6940
- email: schoolswimming@lsv.com.au
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