Rebecca Taylor is convinced that infant swimming lessons helped save her son’s life.

Early last year, when Jadon was 14 months old, he disappeared while Taylor was video-calling on Skype with her husband, who had been deployed to Italy. They had just moved into a rental house in Kailua with an unfenced swimming pool.

After realizing she hadn’t seen Jadon for a few minutes, she ran outside and found him floating, face up, in the pool.

Luckily, Jadon, who is now 2, did not suffer any permanent damage. Doctors checked his lungs at the hospital, kept him under observation for two days and then sent him home.

Taylor swears it was the lessons Jadon had taken with Infant Swimming Resource-certified instructor Deb Pyrek, with a focus on self-rescue techniques, that made the difference.

Jadon was 7 months old when he learned some water survival skills, including how to hold his breath underwater and how to roll onto his back and float unassisted.

During the final week of lessons, students practice these skills fully clothed to mimic a real-life scenario.

"I’m a firm believer," Taylor said. "I would do it again in less than a heartbeat."

Today, Jadon loves to swim and continues to take lessons.

Between 2003 and 2012, 52 children drowned in Hawaii, according to the state Department of Health. Forty-two percent of the drownings occurred in the ocean, and 33 percent occurred in swimming pools. More than half of ocean drowning victims were 16 or older, while the majority of pool drowning victims were under age 6.

Pyrek, who has taught hundreds of students under 6 years old self-rescue and swimming skills, reminds parents that there is no substitute for adult supervision.

Ben Komer, president of Leahi Swim School, recommends children start swimming lessons as young as 6 months old.

"The sooner, the better," Komer said. "In our experience, the longer you wait to get your kids in the water, the harder it is to get them comfortable in the water."

Children can begin learning water skills as infants and can swim as young as 1 or 2 years old, according to Komer, who learned to swim at just 18 months old. Generally, when children reach the age of 5, it takes more work for them to overcome their fears.

Leahi Swim School, which has locations in Manoa and Pearl City, offers parent-accompanied swim classes for ages 6 months to 3 years.

For children ages 3 and up, Komer considers basic skills such as being able to hold one’s breath and put one’s face in the water for at least 10 seconds essential, as well as being able to float in the middle of the pool and then stand up.

One of the biggest mistakes for parents of children learning to swim is to rely on arm floats, which Komer does not recommend.

"You’re promoting bad body position, first of all, and second, a false sense of security," he said.

The American Red Cross found in a recent survey that two-thirds of those polled mistakenly believe putting those inflatable arm floats, or "water wings," on children is enough to keep them safe when an adult is not nearby.

Make a monster at Kaimuki studio

Monsters are taking over the Art Explorium in Kaimuki this week.

Students can get messy and create their own papier-mache pinata monster from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday. The first session will be used to create the form of the monster; the second session includes painting and decorating the creation using recycled materials.

The class is instructed by Anna Leychenko of WeART clothing and is suitable for ages 6 and up. Cost is $30 for the two-day workshop.

If monsters don’t pique your child’s interest, the art studio presents Exploring Watercolors from 9 to 11 a.m. July 31.

Students will create greeting cards in the class using a variety of techniques, including wet on wet and wax resist.

The class is instructed by Regina Bode, who has taught drawing and painting courses at the Hawai’i State Art Museum and the Hono•lulu Museum of Art. The class is designed for ages 4 and up and costs $15.

Registration is required for both classes.

The studio is at 1142 Koko Head Ave. Call 312-4316, email janice@artexplorium.org or visit artexplorium.org.

Nancy Arcayna, Star-Advertiser

Camp helps kids push business ideas

Foster the ideas of your budding entrepreneur at Camp BizGym, a five-day camp for kids enrolled in grades K-12.

During Camp BizGym at Mid-Pacific Insititute, students learn to create a short video on a business idea of their own to promote through online "crowd-funding" platforms such as indigogo.com or kickstarter.com.

Mentors will help them create a script, shoot video, edit and implement a viral media strategy.

Up to 30 students will be accepted for the class that runs from 8 a.m. to noon July 29 to Aug. 2. Participation fee is $100 per student.

To register or learn more about Camp BizGym, email Caroline Kim, caroline@bizgym.org.

Nina Wu, Star-Advertiser