Water safety begins in infancy: New Swim Lesson DVD for Children

Saint Simons Island, GA February 7, 2006 —- Swim Bea Productions (www.swimbea.com), has just released a DVD in both English and Spanish, Learn to Swim with Miss Bea.
The new Swim Lesson DVD shows 6 month old babies holding their breath.

"Miss Bea" demonstrates how to teach a child to turn and catch the side if the child falls in the pool. There is no guarantee that a drowning situation can be avoided 100% but the video shows that teaching a child how to be comfortable in the water and how to react to an emergency situation can help to reduce water related injuries and death. The National Safe Kids Campaign states, "The majority of children who survive (92 percent) are discovered within two minutes following submersion, and most children who die (86 percent) are found after 10 minutes. Nearly all who require cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) die or are left with severe brain injury." Even if the baby does not learn to swim, by holding his breath, parents will have the 2 minutes necessary to save their child from brain injury if he falls in the water.

The video also helps prepare the children and parents for swimming lessons. As the child and parent watch the video and then go to the pool to practice the activities that they see, children will overcome fears, gain confidence and learn the motions necessary for efficient swimming.

Many parents and swim instructors are unsure about how to teach infants and young children how to hold their breath. Parents and children in the video clearly demonstrate step by step how to teach a young child to go under water. Cindy Lane highly acclaims the DVD without reservation. I highly recommend this swim lesson DVD. I have four daughters and they have all taken lessons with Miss Bea. Their progress after each lesson was amazing. I never thought they could learn so much at such a young age. Since we are surrounded by water where we live, it was of utmost importance that my girls learn survival skills as well as find enjoyment in the water. This is one video that parents should not pass up!
The DVD illustrates how developing a positive attitude toward water activities can start with bathtub activities and how to make the transition from the tub to the pool comfortable and fun. The parent/instructor will need to remain calm and loving, especially if the child has little or no pool experience. The DVD features a new parent in the tub while her baby floats in the water and moves in a prone position, a technique recommended by world known Esther Williams in her Swim video with her own grandchildren.

Knowing how to swim is important for both survival and enjoyment in the water. Bea Skeens teaches parents and swim instructors techniques and strategies for swimming lessons that she has developed in her thirty years of teaching swimming. Parents and swimming instructors alike will discover that learning together the fundamentals of swimming will become an enjoyable experience as the children master the skills of kicking, digging, going under the water, floating, turning to the wall, kicking on the back, doing the flip float, doing the rocket, and swimming alone.

An instructional Video on DVD with a Spanish and English version for parents and swim instructors shows how to teach babies and children how to swim and be safe in the water. Featuring original footage with more than twenty children and their parents demonstrating water activities, the video is fun and educational. Produced after more than 30 years of research and extensive videotaping hundreds of infants and young children learning how to swim, parents and swim instructors will see evidence that babies can learn to swim. As the children, parents, and instructors, copy the techniques, they will be convinced that with practice and a positive attitude, they can do it too!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Beatriz Skeens, CubanAmerican, National Board Certified classroom teacher in Brunswick Georgia, has been teaching babies how to swim since 1971 in Florida, North Carolina, and Georgia. Former Red Cross Water Safety Instructor with experience with the YMCA and the YWCA, she has developed her own step by step program for teaching babies and children how to swim and be safe in the water.

DVD/VIDEO SUMMARY:

Title: Learn to Swim with Miss Bea — A Nadar con la Maestra Beatriz
Author: Beatriz Gaston Skeens
Publisher: Swim Bea Productions
SAN: 257-4772
ISBN: 0-9773925-0-3
Bar code: 0-780977-392506

35 minutes long each the English and Spanish versions, $24.95

To place orders for the DVD, contact:
Swim Bea Productions
P. O. Box 24558
St. Simons Island, GA 31522
Toll-free 1-866-974-6232

Media contact:

Beatriz Gaston Skeens
Swim Bea Productions

866-974-6232

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Spanish version of the press release will be sent upon request