Naperville swim school offers adaptive lessons for kids with autism

Big Blue Swim School in Naperville is making a splash this April, spreading awareness about Autism Acceptance Month.

Its adaptive swim lessons help families with kids on the spectrum navigate water safety.

Kids with autism have higher drowning risk

Children on the spectrum have a higher risk of water-related accidents. The National Autism Association reports that children with autism have a drowning risk up to 160 times greater than other kids.

Big Blue Regional Manager Tony Biars has a son with autism, who is drawn to the water. That motivated Biars to put him in swim lessons.

“One thing we noticed, when we are around water, or any body of water, is that the first thing he wants to do is, like, jump into the pool, regardless of how deep it is. So being a parent, making sure he can swim, that’s something I’ve been passionate about, that I brought to Big Blue, and that’s one of our goals, is to make sure not just every kid can swim, but any kid can swim,” Biars said.

Click Here to check out the full article by Natalie Fopma from NCTV17