Kiwi Sport

LI: to learn how to use life jackets
This week we were learning survival skills with life jackets. We first learned how to do a safe entry with a life jacket. It was a pencil dive but modified. So we put one hand on the life jacket and the other covering our nose and mouth. The reason we cover our nose and mouth is so the water doesn't come in our body. We also learned something called a cold shock. Which is when you go into really cold water and your mouth opens up. Then the water goes in your mouth. So that's why we cover our nose and mouth.

Then we learned about when there are a ton of people out in the ocean we have to stick together. So one way we did was make a chain. We first lie back, then hold the back of the person's life jacket, then kick to the side, but not the person in front. Another way was to huddle. Make a circle then wrap your arm under each others armpits. But when someone is cold or hurt in the group put them in the middle of your circle. We also had to put our knees up but not all the way up or you could lie down then sink or drown.

We also learned that there is a hood on the back of our life jacket. The life jacket was for lying down. So we swam lying back down, and also the front as well.

We also learned the H.E.L.P position. H.E.L.P stands for:
Heat
Escape
Lessening
Position
How we do the Help position is we have to stay in a cannonball pose, so just tuck your legs up and wrap your arms around them. The reason it is like that is because the heat is staying in the torso, which your legs are heating up. In your torso are a lot of your vital organs, because if you just spread out the heat is going to go everywhere.

We should also always where a life jacket when you are on the boat or not on the water, because it is extremely difficult to put it your life jacket on when you are in the water.