Glossary
Adaptive aquatics
Swim lessons and water activities adapted for people with disabilities or special health needs.
Adaptive aquatics means swim lessons and water activities that are adapted for people with disabilities or special health needs. Teachers may change the pace, the group size, the way they explain skills, the equipment or the way people enter the pool. The AAP (opens in a new tab) says swim lessons and recreational aquatics can be adapted for children with special health needs and developmental disabilities such as autism, and that these programs reduce drowning risk and can improve swimming skills.
Why it matters: some families face much higher drowning risks. Deaths among people with autism are nearly 40 times as likely to be caused by drowning as deaths in the general population (CDC (opens in a new tab)), and researchers recommend swim lessons for children with autism as soon as they are diagnosed (Guan and Li (opens in a new tab)).
Where to look:
- in New York City, the NYC Parks Adaptive Swim Program (opens in a new tab) offers instruction and water exercise for children and adults with disabilities, free with a recreation center membership, by lottery;
- ask local pools and YMCAs about adaptive or one-on-one classes;
- Red Cross Water Safety Instructors are trained to accommodate people who learn differently.
See adaptive swim lessons and autism water safety.
What you can do today: call one local pool and ask whether it offers adaptive or one-on-one lessons.