Swim Lessons

Instructor Ratio 1:10

Min. of 3 children per class

 

Prerequisite: None
Parent/Child A: 6mo – 2 year olds

Parent/Child A introduces basic skills to parents and children. Parents learn how to safely work with their child in the water, including how to appropriately support and hold their child in the water and how to prepare and encourage their child to participate fully and try the skills. Children receive an introduction to basic skills that lay a foundation for learning to swim. In addition, parents are introduced to several water safety topics. This class is recommended for 6 month to two years old.

Parent/Child B: 2-5 year olds

Parent/Child B builds on the skills introduced in Parent/Child A. Participants improve on these skills and learn more advanced skills in this class including water entry and exit and buoyancy on both the front and back. Water safety topics are also included in this level. It is not a requirement to take Parent/Child A, but is recommended based on skill level. This class is recommended for two to five year olds.

Instructor Ratio 1:6

Min. 3 | Max. 6

(Classes may be combined to reduce cancellation risk)

 

Skippers 1: 
The purpose of this class is to familiarize children to the aquatic environment and help them acquire rudimentary basic aquatic skills including but not limited to submerging the face in water, retrieving submerged objects in shallow water, swimming on their front and back, and water safety practices. We will work on developing positive attitudes and safe practices in and around water!

• Prerequisites: No skill prerequisites.

Skippers 2: 

Skippers 2 aims to advance basic aquatic skills, with children performing them for longer times, distances, or in deeper water. It introduces independent aquatic locomotion and refines arm and leg movements in preparation for strokes. Water safety topics from Skippers 1 are also reinforced.

• Prerequisites: Successful completion of Skippers 1 and/or successful demonstration of the Skippers 1 exit skills including the following;
  • Enter & Exit water independently
  • Confidence moving in water (kicking or swimming)
  • Ability to float on back
  • Confidence submerging face & blowing bubbles
• This is not a comprehensive list of skills needed to be prepared for Skippers 2, but rather a guide to help determine placement.

Skippers 3:

Skippers 3 aims to enhance children's proficiency in previously learned skills through guided practice and increased repetitions, distances, or difficulty. Skills are performed independently, focusing on coordination and control of arm and leg movements. New water safety topics are introduced, while reinforcing existing knowledge and skills.

• Prerequisites: Successful completion of Skippers 2 and/or successful demonstration of the Skippers 2 exit skills including the following;
  • Enter & Exit water independently
  • Ability to glide and swim (2 body lengths)
  • Ability to float on back (5+ seconds)
  • Confidence submerging
• This is not a comprehensive list of skills needed to be prepared for Skippers 3, but rather a guide to help determine placement.

Instructor Ratio 1:6

Min. 3 children per class

 

Level 1, Introduction to Water Skills
Level 1 introduces basic aquatic skills, which participants continue to build on as they progress through Learn-to-Swim Levels. In addition, participants start developing positive attitudes, effective swimming habits and safe practices in and around the water. Level 1 skills may overlap with the Skippers 1 and Skippers 2 skills. Skills worked on in Level 1 include but are not limited to bobbing, submerging the face and blowing bubbles, gliding on the front and back, swimming on the front and back using arms and legs, and water safety. Recommended for 5 to 12 year olds.

Prerequisites: No skill prerequisites.

Level 2, Fundamental Aquatic Skills
The objective of Level 2 is to give participants success with fundamental skills. Many of the skills taught in this level are the similar skills taught in Skippers 3. This level marks the beginning of true locomotion skills. Participants learn to glide and float without support and recover to a vertical position. Participants further develop simultaneous and alternating arm and leg actions on the front and back, laying the foundation for future strokes. New water safety topics are introduced, and previously acquired water safety knowledge and skills are reinforced. Recommended for 5 to 12 year olds.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of Level 1 and/or successful demonstration of the Level 1 exit skills including entering the water independently, traveling 5 yards in the water, bobbing, gliding on the front, rolling to the back to float, and recovering to a vertical position. This is not a comprehensive list of skills needed to be prepared for Level 2, but rather a guide to help determine placement.

Level 3, Stroke Development
The objectives of Level 3 are to expand proficiency of previously learned skills by providing additional guided practice. Participants learn and practice survival floating and learn to swim front crawl and elementary backstroke at rudimentary proficiency levels. You introduce the scissors and dolphin kicks and extend the time duration for treading water. Participants also learn rules for headfirst entries and begin to learn to enter the water headfirst from a seated position at poolside (if the water is 9 feet deep or deeper). New and previously addressed water safety topics are included. Recommended for 5 to 12 year olds.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of Level 2 and/or successful demonstration of the Level 2 exit skills including float or tread water for 15 seconds in chest-deep water, swim on front or back for 5 body lengths, transition from back float to front to vertical position, and push off and swim using combined leg and arm actions. This is not a comprehensive list of skills needed to be prepared for Level 3, but rather a guide to help determine placement.

Level 4, Stroke Improvement
In Level 4, participants improve their aquatic skills and increase their endurance by swimming the strokes learned in Level 3 (i.e., front crawl, elementary backstroke) for greater distances and with more advanced proficiency. Participants add arm actions to the previously learned scissors kick and breaststroke kick to perform the rudimentary sidestroke and to learn the breaststroke. Participants also begin to learn the back crawl and butterfly, as well as the basics of performing a simple open turn at a wall. Recommended for 5 to 12 year olds.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of Level 3 and/or successful demonstration of the Level 3 exit skills including jumping into deep water and recovering to surface, treading or floating for one minute, and swimming front crawl and elementary backstroke for 25 yards. This is not a comprehensive list of skills needed to be prepared for Level 4, but rather a guide to help determine placement.

Level 5, Stroke Refinement
In Level 5, participants refine their performance of all six strokes (i.e., front crawl, back crawl, butterfly, breaststroke, elementary backstroke and sidestroke) and increase the distances that they swim. Participants also learn to perform flip turns on the front and back. Recommended for 5 to 12 year olds.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of Level 4 and/or successful demonstration of the Level 4 exit skills including swimming front crawl for 25 yards, changing direction and position as necessary and swimming elementary backstroke for 25 yards, backstroke for 15 yards, submerge and swim 3 to 5 body lengths underwater and safely returning to surface. This is not a comprehensive list of skills needed to be prepared for Level 5, but rather a guide to help determine placement.

Level 6, Swimming and Skill Proficiency – Fitness Swimming
The objective of this Level is to refine strokes so participants swim them with greater efficiency and effectiveness over longer distances. This class will also work on different types of turns and dives as well as water safety skills.

Prerequisites: Successful completion of Level 5 and/or successful demonstration of the Level 5 exit skills including performing a shallow-angle dive in deep water, front crawl and elementary backstroke for 50 yards using appropriate turns, and breaststroke for 25 yards.  This is not a comprehensive list of skills needed to be prepared for Level 6, but rather a guide to help determine placement.