Water Safety & Drowning Prevention

1. On a piece of flipchart paper / whiteboard / SMART board, write the key messages for water and ice safety. Review the safety rules with the class.

a. Water and ice safety key messages include:

i. Always swim with an adult
ii. If you are not a strong swimmer, wear a lifejacket
iii. If you are on the water, always wear a lifejacket
iv. If there are water safety rules that are posted, always follow the rules
v. Always check the water before entering lakes or pools
vi. In the wintertime, check with local authorities to make sure it is safe to go on frozen lakes and ponds

2. Explain to students that "it is important to always wear a lifejacket when you are on a watercraft, or if you are not a strong swimmer. Wearing a lifejacket ensures that you will float and keep your head above water. Another type of water safety vest called a Personal Floatation Device (PFD) can help keep your core temperature warm. A PFD will keep a person floating, but not necessarily face up. A PFD is lighter and less bulky than a lifejacket. PFDs keep people warmer in the water because the foam in the vest is evenly distributed around the body."

3. "Pool floaties or other swimming aids are not a substitute for lifejackets. Today, we will learn more about the science of floating, and why wearing a lifejacket is important."

4. Explain to the class that "humans are buoyant, which means that people can float. Today we will be learning about density and buoyancy, and why wearing a lifejacket is important when you are on a watercraft, or in the water."

a. Follow instructions as listed in the lesson plan about Density, Sinking and Floating, which can be found here: 5th Grade - Lesson 2.4 Density and Sinking and Floating Objective Key Concepts NGSS Alignment Summary Evaluation Safety.
b. In the 'Extend' section of the lesson plan, discuss how lifejackets change your density and help you float when you are on the water. For example, "the key to floating is being light for your size. So if you can add size to an object without adding much weight, the object will be lighter relative to its size. This means that the density of the overall object will decrease and be more likely to float (ACS, 2019). This is the science behind lifejackets, and how they ensure that you float, even if you're not a strong swimmer."
c. Use the following experiment to show the class how adding a lightweight material like bubble wrap to an object increases the size of the object but doesn't change its density:

i. Have a clear container of water ready, and various balls (ping pong ball, hockey ball, tennis ball, golf ball)
ii. Show the class each of the balls and have them make a prediction about whether the ball will sink or float. Record the guesses on a flipchart or whiteboard.
iii. Place each of the balls in the container of water one at a time and record what happens. Compare what happened to your guesses. Discuss why some balls floated and others did not,(i.e., the density of the balls are different, a ping pong ball is filled with air inside, a golf ball is solid).
iv. Now, using bubble wrap, wrap the objects that sank in some bubble wrap using tape or elastic band and try placing them in the container of water again. Did it float or sink now? If it didn't float, add more bubble wrap and try again.
v. Let the class know that this is how a lifejacket helps them stay afloat in water because it is not very dense but increases their overall size in the water just like the bubble wrap helped with the balls.
vi. Optional: Lemon experiment.

1. Try putting a lemon in the container of water. Have the class guess if it will float or sink first.
2. It floats. Why is that? Lemons are porous and have a thick skin which contains a lot of air which makes it not very dense.
3. Ask the class what they think they could do to make the lemon sink? Examples may include: cutting it in pieces, pushing it down, removing the skin (which will make it sink), or adding more weight to the lemon (you could wrap a denser object to the lemon like a metal fork(s) or spoon(s) with an elastic band.

5. Explain to the class that they are going to learn about safe behaviours around ice.
Note: This does not include sports played in a rink, for example, hockey and ringette. For more information on sports played on ice, please see the Sports Safety module.

a. Explain to the class that when natural bodies of water, like ponds or lakes freeze over, a layer of ice will form. However, the ice that forms may be thin, or may not freeze at a uniform thickness. All ice has some risk. Ask the class to brainstorm what factors might contribute to the ice thickness? Many factors affect ice thickness including:

i. type of water
ii. location
iii. the time of year
iv. other environmental factors such as: water depth and size of body of water, currents, tides and other moving water, chemicals including salt, fluctuations in water levels, logs, rocks and docks absorbing heat from the sun, changing air temperature, shock waves from vehicles travelling on the ice (e.g., ice roads).

b. Explain to the class that the colour of the ice can be an indication of its strength.

i. Clear blue ice is strongest.
ii. White opaque or snow ice is half as strong as blue ice.
iii. Opaque ice is formed by wet snow freezing on the ice.
iv. Grey ice is unsafe. The greyness indicates the presence of water.

c. The thickness of the ice should be measured in several locations before using, and different activities require different thicknesses of ice for safe use (i.e.: skating, walking on the ice, ice fishing, driving on ice). For more information about the thickness of ice and the appropriate activities, please see:

i. Ice thickness poster from the Lifesaving Society

d. Explain to the class that when around frozen bodies of water there are some rules they should follow:

i. Children should never go on a frozen pond or lake unless they check with an adult who says that it is safe. It is never safe to walk on frozen rivers, streams or storm water ponds. Even in the winter, water maybe moving under the ice making it thin and weak.
ii. If children see a frozen pond or lake and a sign that says ‘danger, thin ice’, they must stay off the ice.

e. Ask the class to think about what they should do if a person is on the ice and the ice cracks? Explain to the class that there are a few important things to remember.

i. First, get off the ice immediately.
ii. To prevent the ice from cracking further, a person should get on their belly and crawl off the ice. Crawling in a horizontal position will help evenly distribute their weight, and help stop the ice from cracking more.
iii. If the ice cracks and someone falls into the water, they should call for help and try to escape the water. Have someone on the shore call 911 immediately.

6. Cold water safety. Use the Cold Water video to demonstrate why cold water can be dangerous.

7. Ask the class if they know what hypothermia is? Ask the students to identify how they would recognize someone who is very cold or hypothermic? (They could discuss as a class, or draw a photo). Record answers on a flipchart or whiteboard.

a. Explain that "Hypothermia is the loss of heat to the body. Hypothermia is the greatest danger to someone in the water, especially if they have fallen through the ice as the water is extremely cold. As the body loses its heat, body functions slow down. This can quickly lead to death." In Alberta waters, hypothermia can be a risk even in the summer because the water is still cold.
b. Explain that there are three regions of the body that lose heat the fastest. Ask the class to brainstorm what they are, then discuss:

i. The three regions that lose heat the fastest are the head and neck, the sides of the chest, and the groin region.

c. Signs that the body is losing heat and becoming hypothermic include:

i. Continual shivering
ii. Poor coordination of movements
iii. Slowing down and falling behind
iv. Numb hands and feet leading to stumbling and clumsiness
v. Dazed, confused, careless or forgetful behavior
vi. Slowed or slurred speech; slow response to questions
vii. Dilated pupils
viii. Decreased attention span

d. More information and to learn more about what happens when your body is in cold water, and the signs of hypothermia can be found from Canadian Red Cross - Hypothermia and the Dangers of Cold Water.
e. Explain to the class that you are going to conduct an experiment about heat loss with the following activity. Have the students record their observations on the 'Heat Loss' worksheet. Use the Heat Loss Experiment details found at the end of this section.