Infants take swimming lessons

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Drowning ranks as the No. 1 cause of accidental deaths for kids under the age of 4 in North Carolina.

A swimming program at the Mecklenburg County Aquatic Center in Charlotte is working to change that.

It’s called Infant Swimming Resource. Children can start as young as 6 months old.

Canan Long enrolled her 11-month-old daughter Olivia and she’s amazed by the results.

"I have great confidence that if she was to fall in the water she’d be able to survive until one of us can reach her," said Long.

ISR master instructor Jayme Kreitman says they begin with survival floating.

"If they were to fall into a body of water, we teach them to rotate from a face down position onto their back, to rest and breathe on a back float and wait until help would arrive," Kreitman said.

The American Academy of Pediatrics says kids shouldn't start swim lessons until they turn 4 years old and they’re developmentally ready.

Dr. Linda Quan says, "The real danger of enrolling your child in these classes is getting that false sense of security that your child is now safe. No child is drown proof."

ISR master swim instructors agree.

"We say the only way to prevent drowning is constant supervision. We advocate segmented supervision so that if you're at the pool with your spouse or somebody else, that during that 10 minute segment, your only job is to watch that child in the water," Kreitman said.

For more information about enrolling your child in ISR classes, visit the Infant Swimming Resource Web site at www.infantswim.com.