Children and Boating Safety

Boats and children are definitely compatible in terms of fun, most of kids love the water and enjoy being part of the daily activities, nevertheless , boating is not the safest activity for a kid, there are risks all the time, so here will talk about children and boating safety. The idea is not to scare you of being on a boat with your kids, the idea is to learn how to avoid some of the possible problems and also face them in case they happen.

Review your country's regulations

Some countries have specific regulations in terms of kids and boats, also in terms of people and boats, for example, the Canadian regulations indicate that if you operate a boat with an engine then you need some specific documents and certificates, and the Australian regulations indicate specifically when a kid must use a lifejacket. So remember, take a look at your country's regulations to avoid tickets and take care better of your kids.

Things to take into account

When it comes to children and boating safety there are several things to take into account, let's see the most important ones:

• Lifejackets: This is probable the most popular and important security device for everybody, make sure that they fit perfectly with your kids body and also remember to teach them how to use it.
• Constant supervision: Take a look at your kids constantly, if you want to spend a while with your friends, you can designate a "watcher" to take care of the kids while the rest enjoy another activity, he/she must be a responsible person, and cannot get distracted.
• Swimming: It is very important to know to swim, if you have time, take a while and teach your kids how to, if you do not know how to teach them or do not have time, you can enroll them on a swimming academy.
• Rules: You can create some rules and teach your kids to follow them, for example:
• Nobody runs on the boat.
• Nobody take any part of his body out of the boat when it is functioning.
• Do not move from your seat when the boat is moving.

As you can see, these type of rules, as simple as they might be, can be really useful at the time of boating with kids.

Other recommendations

• Make sure that there is nobody on the boat when it is getting fueled.
• Help the boat captain to take a look of the surroundings, especially when the boat is leaving and arriving to the port, that way you won't crash with anything.
• Teach your kids to throw a flotation device in case somebody falls and needs one.
• Teach your kids about the different security devices onboard, for example the extinguisher, lights and flares, if they are old enough, you can teach them how to use them as well.
• Teach the kids to never go near the water unless they are with their parents, or another adult who knows how to swim.
• Teach the kids to never pretend they are drowning.