Swim Lessons

The Y’s new swim lesson progression curriculum is designed to help participants reach their goals and provide a clear progression track. Our swim lessons are specifically tailored to the participant’s age, swimming ability, level of physical development and confidence in the water. Participants will progress to the next stage based on swim evaluations. It is not uncommon for participants to remain in the same stage for multiple sessions while they develop all the skills necessary to advance.

YMCA Swim lessons help adults, kids and families learn an important life skill and supports them in gaining the knowledge, ability and stamina to become strong and confident swimmers. Our program uses skill-based instruction through activities, maximizes physical activity, emphasizes safety, elevates character and engages families.

Swim Lessons Categories:

There are three main categories of swim lessons. Within this framework, there are stages of developmental milestones. See the Swim Lesson Selector prior to registering to learn more about placement and new class title equivalents to the former fish-named classes.

• Swim Starters: develops water enrichment and aquatic readiness in children ages 6 months to 3 years. This category focuses on developing swim readiness skills through fun and confidence-building experiences. Parents also learn how to supervise children in the water, how to prevent accidents and how to plan for emergencies.
• Swim Basics: develops personal water safety and basic swimming skills in students of all ages. Swimmers develop a high level of comfort in the water by practicing safe water habits, engaging in underwater exploration and learning how to swim to safety and exit if they fall into a body of water.
• Swim Strokes: introduces and refines stroke technique in older students (school age, teens and adults). Having mastered the fundamentals, students learn additional water safety skills and build stroke technique, developing skills that maintain good health, increase well-being and foster a lifetime of physical activity.

 

Goodbye Fish - Hello Stages:

We’re saying goodbye to the fish names for classes and hello to an upgraded Y Swim Lesson curriculum. The fish names we previously used to identify the different levels have been replaced with names that more closely align with the skills we will work on in each stage. Swim stages A, B and C give our youngest friends, infants and toddlers, an opportunity to get comfortable in the water with a parent or guardian. In stages 1-3, our trained swim instructors facilitate activities that focus on building confidence in the water, instilling good water safety habits and personal growth. In stages 4-6, instructors help swimmers build confidence in deep water as well as work on stroke techniques. This exciting new curriculum helps each participant experience a sense of accomplishment after each lesson.

Y swim instructors are trained to work with swimmers of all ages and abilities. Swim lessons provide important life skills that could save a life and will benefit participants for a lifetime.

Y lifeguards are always on deck and are First Aid & Professional Rescuer CPR/AED certified.