Our AquaSafe programme has been designed to build children’s confidence in their own water safety abilities and to inspire them to safely help others if they get into difficulty in the water.
A pole, bucket and rope was all the inspiration one six year old boy needed to perform a well thought out and safe dryland water rescue on another kiddie, during a recent AquaSafe Survival/Rescue class at Ruawai primary school, Northland.
For this particular non-contact rescue lesson, Joanne Beckett, RLSSNZ board member and AquaSafe teacher, supplied buckets, ropes, boards, hoops (with floaters), and bottles amongst other things. Students were paired off and then asked to choose items which they
would use to perform a rescue.
“One of the boy’s was standing next to a pole which he had tied a rope to one end and at the other end a large bucket handle. He then proceeded to throw the bucket to his buddy. I asked him why he had tied it to the pole and he simply replied “so I could use my hands”,
Joanne said.
“I was so impressed that I stopped the lesson to show the class that this is what using your initiative was all about. In all the years of teaching water safety, I had never seen this before in a student so young.
“I was thrilled for this little guy, because I knew he’d been having trouble fitting into the class and school routine. By giving him the opportunity to learn through play, albeit serious play, I could see his sense of achievement and self-worth growing. I was just so thrilled and
could see how well he responded to being recognised as a smart little fella and a life saver!
“It was such a rewarding experience for me too. Real action learning about such an important behaviour as water safety,” said Joanne.
AquaSafe is designed for early primary school children. It has three components; water discovery, water smart and rescue modules.
