Water safety is an important lifelong skill to have. Learn the basics of swimming with beginner swim lessons! Here are some swimming lesson plans for various age groups. (Yes, it’s never too late to learn!)
The best way to get started when learning swimming basics is taking beginner swimming lessons. You might be reading this for your child or yourself, so we’ve broken down some swimming lesson plans based on age level.
Swimming Basics for Infants & Toddlers
It’s an exciting time to be the parent of a newborn or a toddler! Of course you want to do everything you can to protect your baby, and that includes developing their comfortability in water. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends starting swim lessons at age 1, identified as the ideal age to start in order to prevent accidental drowning. However, you can start as early as 6 months. So what do newborn swimming lessons involve?
- Parent holds
- Submersion
- Assisted flotation
- Basic arm and leg motions
- Games, songs, and having fun in the water!
By providing your nurturing presence in the water, your baby will create a positive association between themselves and the pool. These classes are all about making your baby comfortable in the water, with introductions to basic movements, floating, and submersion. It’s also a great bonding experience for parent and baby in general!
Swimming Basics for Kids
Child group swim lessons begin at age 3. The majority of swim skills are learned through these beginner and intermediate lessons. There are 4 levels of progression. Levels 1 & 2 focus on the basics, stressing comfortability in the water. Levels 3 & 4 involve more advanced abilities and learning various swimming strokes. After children have completed the four levels of group lessons, they then have the option of continuing on in our Swim Club program, which is for advanced swimmers who want to train for competitive swimming.
The Red Cross curriculum serves as the basis for Elite’s group swim lessons, as it is the gold standard for water safety instruction. Priority is given to safety skills, next to the development of swim strokes and endurance.
At various stages of progression, Elite’s swimming lessons for kids include:
- Jumping in on your own
- Swim independently
- Floating on stomach & back
- Diving underwater
- Tread water
- Front crawl & rotary breathing
- Elementary backstroke
- Flutter, dolphin, scissors, and breaststroke kicks
- Sidestroke
- Backstroke
- Breaststroke
- Butterfly
Not sure which level to enroll your child? We have created this very handy guide for parents!
Swimming Basics for Adults
Don’t be ashamed if you’ve never formally learned how to swim. Water safety is an extremely important skill to have, so it’s never too late to learn. Adult swim lessons are done in a private one-on-one format at Elite, granting you greater flexibility and individualized attention.
What is taught in adult swimming lessons will depend on the individual. As we’ve said before, everyone is at a different stage in their journey. So if you’re just starting out, lessons will involve:
- Floating
- Holding Breath
- Kicking
- Treading Water
- Basic stroke techniques
- Learning to use equipment such as pull buoys and kick boards
More advanced swimmers will learn:
- Flip turns
- Stroke refinement
- Endurance training
These swimming lesson plans are just examples. Speak to your swim instructor on what you’d like to learn and they will tailor the lessons to your needs.
Beginner Swim Lessons
Elite offers beginner swim lessons for all ages – infant to adult! All of our teachers have completed a 35-hour course to understand how to instruct swimming to swimmers of all levels and abilities, earning their Red Cross certification as Water Safety Instructors. Some of our instructors are also qualified personal trainers or aquatic exercise instructors, and many of them have previous competitive swimming experience.
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