Multi-Child Water Supervision Plan

📝 Step 1: Give Every Child a Tier

Tier 1 — Non-swimmer or brand new to water: needs touch supervision, an adult within arm's reach at all times, and a properly fitted U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket any time they are near water outside of a lesson.
Tier 2 — Developing swimmer: can move a little and reach the wall on a good day, but is not reliable when tired, startled, or in deeper water. Needs constant eyes and an adult close enough to reach them in seconds.
Tier 3 — Water competent: can enter water over the head, return to the surface, float or tread for one minute, turn around and find an exit, swim about 25 yards, and get out without help. Still never swims unsupervised or alone.

👀 Step 2: Name the Water Watcher

• One adult is the Water Watcher — by name, out loud. "Everyone is watching" reliably means nobody is.
• The Watcher's only job is the water. No phone, no grill, no bag hunting, no conversation that pulls their eyes away.
• Shifts run 15–20 minutes. Attention fades fast, especially in sun and noise.
• Hand off out loud, face to face: "You have the water now." Wait for the other adult to say yes before you look away.
• Pass a physical marker — a tag, lanyard, hat, or this sheet — so anyone can see who has the water at a glance.
• If the Watcher has to step away, the water closes. Everyone out until a new Watcher takes over.

🤝 Step 3: Match Supervision to the Weakest Swimmer

• Set the rules to your Tier 1 child, not your average child. A group is only as safe as its least capable swimmer.
• Every Tier 1 child needs a dedicated adult in the water with them, within arm's reach. One adult cannot touch-supervise two non-swimmers at once.
• Count your adults before you count your kids. More non-swimmers than available adults means fewer kids in the water at a time — take turns.
• Give each Tier 1 and Tier 2 child a zone — the shallow end, this side of the rope — and say it out loud so they know the boundary too.
• Life jackets belong on the deck too, not just in the water — many young children who drown were not expected to be in the water at all.
• Water wings, floaties, and puddle jumpers are toys, not safety devices. Only a U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jacket counts.

🧒 Step 4: Older Siblings Are Not Lifeguards

• A strong-swimming big kid is not a supervision plan. Children miss the quiet signs of drowning that adults are taught to catch.
• Never leave an older child "in charge" of the water, even for a two-minute trip inside.
• Give older kids a helper job instead: buddy up with a sibling, call out headcounts, fetch the adult — never take responsibility.
• Teach every child "reach or throw, don't go" — hand them something to grab, never swim out after a struggling swimmer.

🔢 Step 5: Run the Headcount

• Know your number. Say it out loud at the start: "We have five." Write it in the box below.
• Count every 10–15 minutes, at every shift change, and any time a child gets in or out.
• Count heads, not swimsuits — touch or name each child so you never count the same one twice.
• Recount after every distraction: a phone call, a spill, a new family arriving, a snack break.
• Do a full "everybody out" count before you pack up, and again before you leave the property.

🚨 Step 6: If a Child Is Missing — Water First

• Check the water first, every time. Seconds matter, and the water is where a missing child is most likely to be in danger.
• Scan the whole pool, including the bottom — not just the surface. Then check hot tubs, buckets, and any standing water.
• Shout for help and send one person to call 911 while you keep searching. Do not search silently.
• Get every other child out of the water immediately so the remaining adults can search instead of supervise.
• At least one adult present should know CPR. Bystander CPR started right away meaningfully improves the odds.