By Foss Swim School
At Foss Swim School, we teach life-changing swim skills through fun activities, and while our heart may be in the water, we have found a new way to carry that same spirit to a new audience with a water-safety themed Story Walk in the St. Louis suburb of Creve Coeur!
For those not familiar, a Story Walk is an outdoor book, with each page at a separate station spread throughout a park or other public space. Developed in partnership with St. Louis County Parks & Recreation, it encourages learning, physical activity, and fun which makes it a perfect fit for FOSS! The new Story Walk, titled “Paddle Learns About Water Safety,” follows Paddle the Tiger as he learns tips for staying safer during a trip to the pool.
Each station shares information, poses a question, or encourages imagination by its young readers, who can use the walk to the next station to share what they’ve learned or say what they would do if they were in Paddle’s place. This new installation is a way for FOSS to live out our mission of promoting water safety to all.
In a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Oct. 24, employees from the Creve Coeur Foss Swim School and park officials officially opened “Paddle Learns About Water Safety” at Creve Coeur Lake Memorial Park (the walk starts near the Tremayne Shelter for those in the area.)
By sharing basic, easy to remember water safety tips to a broad audience, we can make safety top of mind for families when they spend time at a pool or near open water. Young children especially may be unaware of the risks or being in water. The best way to improve water safety is to take swim lessons, but every child can be safer if they and their families take to heart the lessons Paddle learns along the way:
- Never swim alone
- Wear a bright swimsuit
- Flip and float when you need a break
- And don’t reach for objects that fall in the water; ask for help!
If you’re in the St. Louis area, we hope you’ll stop by and check out the new Story Walk! And for all our registered FOSS families, we look forward to helping your swimmers continue to learn and develop the skills they need to be safer around water.
