Tips to help keep you and your family safe this summer:

• Swim with a buddy
• Stay close to shore
• Don’t swim at dawn or dusk
• Don’t swim around schools of fish or where people are fishing
• Avoid wearing jewelry
• Avoid excess splashing

If a shark does get near you:

• Maintain eye contact with the shark
• Slowly move away, and if possible, exit the water

If the shark tries to bite you:

• Hit shark in the eyes and gills
  • Sensitive areas that can be hurt regardless of personal strength
• Hit the shark on the snout and push away
  • Water-resistance weakens your punch

Five ways to minimize the chance of being bitten by a shark

Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Program for Shark Research at the Florida Museum of Natural History, provides five tips to avoid the chance of being bitten by a shark.

How to avoid shark attacks

While the chance that you will be bitten by a shark is very small, you can take steps to minimize your risk. Ten-year-olds Luke and Sophia created this video to help you stay safe in the water.