Learn to Swim Program

The new American Red Cross Learn-to-Swim Program provides instruction to help swimmers of all ages and abilities develop their swimming and water safety skills. It is designed to give students a positive learning experience.

Learn-to-Swim teaches aquatic and safety skills in a logical progression. The objective is to teach people to swim and to be safe in, on and around the water.

Skills are categorized in the following way:

• Water Entry and Exit
• Breath Control and Underwater Swimming
• Buoyancy
• Changing Direction and Position
• Treading
• Swimming on Front, Back and Side
• General and Personal Water Safety
• Helping Others

The six learn-to-swim levels and the objectives for each level include:

Level 1
Introduction to Water Skills: helps students feel comfortable in the water and to enjoy the water safely.

Level 2
Fundamental Aquatic Skills: gives students success with fundamental skills.

Level 3
Stroke Development: builds on the skills in Level 2 by providing additional guided practice.

Level 4
Stroke Improvement: develops confidence in the strokes learned and to improve other aquatic skills.

Level 5
Stroke Refinement: provides further coordination and refinement of strokes.

Level 6
Swimming and Skill Proficiency: refines the strokes so students swim them with ease, efficiency, power and smoothness over greater distances. Level 6 is designed with "menu" options. Each of these options focus on preparing students to participate in more advance courses, such as Water Safety Instructor and Lifeguard Training. These options include:

• Personal Water Safety
• Lifeguard Readiness
• Fundamentals of Diving
• Fitness Swimming

Learn-to-Swim is the most comprehensive and effective program of its kind available anywhere. View dates and times here.

Parent and Child Aquatics

Developed for children 6 months to 5 years of age, American Red Cross Parent and Child Aquatics builds swimming readiness by emphasizing fun in the water.

Parents and children participate in several guided practice sessions that help children learn elementary skills, including water entry, bubble blowing, front kicking, back floating, underwater exploration and more.

Once children can perform basic skills without parental assistance, they may begin Learn-to-Swim courses.

American Red Cross GuardStart: Lifeguarding Tomorrow

Do you want to get ready for an exciting career as a lifeguard? Designed for youth ages 11-14, American Red Cross GuardStart: Lifeguarding Tomorrow provides a foundation of lifeguarding and life skills. For youth with swimming skills, this program makes an ideal transition between Red Cross Learn to Swim and the Lifeguard Training Course.

GuardStart focuses on five key areas:

• Prevention of aquatic accidents
• Fitness and swimming skills
• Response in an emergency
• Leadership skills
• Professionalism of a lifeguard