There is something about water that calls to children. It is vast but knowable, dangerous but inviting—a thing to be mastered, to be played with, to be conquered, but also feared. And so, when Summer comes, and the pools glisten beneath the sun, children do what they have always done: they leap in. Parents watch, sometimes from the edge, sometimes from a distance, lulled by the laughter and the illusion that joy cannot coexist with danger.

But water does not care for illusion. It does not announce its intentions. It simply is, and for all its beauty, it remains a force as old as time—one that does not yield to innocence, does not make exceptions for youth.

The American Academy of Pediatrics understands this. And so, it urges parents to hold both truths at once: that swimming is freedom and joy, and that it is also risky; that every summer memory made in the pool should be protected with vigilance; that what seems like a moment—a glance at a phone, a turn toward another child—is sometimes all that water needs.

Pool Safety: A Covenant Between Parent and Child

  • Be present, truly present. Never leave children alone in or near water, not even for a second. A responsible adult should always be watching, eyes trained on the water, hands free to act.
  • Touch is security. For children under five, supervision is not a distant watch but a nearness—an arm’s length away, a presence that can pull back from danger in an instant. And that adult? They should know how to swim, should know how to bring breath back to lungs that have lost it.
  • Build barriers. A fence, at least four feet high, enclosing all four sides of the pool, should stand like a sentinel. No openings, no footholds—nothing that invites a child’s curiosity to breach it.
  • Make entry an act of intention. Pool gates should open outward, self-close, and latch beyond a child’s reach. Consider alarms—on the gate, on the surface, beneath the water—so that silence is never mistaken for safety.
  • Fortify the fourth side. If your home is one wall of the barrier, let every door and window facing the pool be more than an invitation. Install alarms that ring loud and clear. Secure pet doors—because even the smallest opening can become a passage to peril.

These are some of the more obvious safeguards. But more than that, they are the quiet rituals of love, the unspoken promises parents make to their children: that the water may call, but we will answer. That the summer will hold them, and so will we.

From the lawyers:
[The information contained in this post is for educational purposes only and is no substitute for the real medical care and advice Dr. Marie would administer. There may be variations in treatment that she may recommend based on individual facts and circumstances.]