Swimming Lessons
Learn about our swimming lesson levels below or register today for lessons.
City of Oshawa converting from Red Cross to Lifesaving Society swimming lessons
The Red Cross has announced it is ending its water safety program in Canada.
As a result, the City of Oshawa will be converting to the Lifesaving Society for the delivery of its Swim Programs, starting Summer 2022. This further builds on our longstanding relationship with the Lifesaving Society, as they are currently our partner for our aquatic leadership programs.
What does this mean for you and your family’s swimming lessons?
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Adapting to the layout of the new program.
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The lifesaving Society Swim Program has a strong emphasis on swimming as a lifesaving skill, whereas the Red Cross program focused on stroke development. Due to this shift in focus, the level you will need to register your swimmer in, could be vastly different. (Please see chart below).
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The levels and content of the new program differ greatly. Please email [email protected] if you require support in determining where you or your child would fit in the new program.
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The new program has a more streamlined pathway to Aquatic leadership courses.
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A report card upon completion of the Session will still be provided.
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The City of Oshawa is excited to offer this new program to the community!
Frequently Asked Questions
| Frequently asked questions |
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Why are you switching? The Red Cross has ended its water safety program in Canada, therefore we have switched to the Lifesaving Society. We have worked with them to develop our program which is focused on lifesaving skills. What level will my child go into the LSS program? Please see conversion chart. Will they still get badges/stickers and report cards? Yes! Why are levels 8, 9, 10 longer in duration? They are focused on lifesaving skills and the content is such that they need to run over a longer period of time. Why does it look like my child has moved down a level in the new program? The new program has different priorities, these center around lifesaving skills not specific stroke development skills. Therefore in order to complete a level they may need to learn some new skills. Why can’t I get a level 8,9,10 Private lesson? This is because these lessons involve group activities centered on Lifesaving. This has the added bonus of preparing swimmers for any future leadership courses they wish to take. |
Red Cross to Lifesaving Society conversion chart
View the chart below to see how your Red Cross level will convert to our new Lifesaving Society levels.
| Former Red Cross Level | New Lifesaving Society Level | Course Description | Age requirement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Star Fish | Parent and Tot 1 | Designed for the 4 to 12-month-old to learn to enjoy the water with the parent. | 4 - 12 months |
| Duck | Parent and Tot 2 | Designed for the 12 to 24-month-old to learn to enjoy the water with the parent | 12 - 24 months |
| Sea Turtle | Parent and Tot 3 | Designed for the 2 to 3-year-old to learn to enjoy the water with the parent. | 2 - 3 years |
| Transition level | The program is designed for toddlers/preschoolers who are comfortable in the water and are capable of doing skills independent from a caregiver. Caregivers are to participate (and should come prepared to be in the class) until their instructor lets them know their child can do it themselves. | 2 - 5 years | |
| Sea Otter |
Fail: Preschool 1 Pass:Preschool 2 |
These preschoolers will have fun learning to get in and out of the water. We'll help them jump into chest deep water. They'll float and glide assisted on their front and back and learn to get their faces wet and blow bubbles underwater. | 3 -5 years |
| Salamander |
Fail: Preschool 2 Pass:Preschool 3 |
These preschoolers learn to jump into chest-deep water by themselves, and get in and get out wearing a lifejacket. They'll submerge and exhale underwater. Wearing a lifejacket they'll glide on their front and back. | 3 -5 years |
| Sunfish |
Fail: Preschool 3 Pass:Preschool 4 |
These preschoolers will try both jumping and a sideways entry into deep water while wearing a lifejacket. They'll recover objects from the bottom in waist-deep water. They'll work on kicking and gliding through the water on their front and back. | 3 -5 years |
| Crocodile |
Fail:Preschool 4 Pass:Preschool 5 |
Advanced preschoolers will learn to do solo jumps into deeper water and get out by themselves. They'll do sideways entries and open their eyes underwater. They'll master a short swim on their front wearing a lifejacket and gliding and kicking on their side. | 3 -5 years |
| Whale | Preschool 5 or Swimmer 2 based on age | These advanced preschoolers are challenged with a forward roll entry wearing a lifejacket and treading water for 10 sec. They'll work on front and back crawl swims for 5 m, interval training and get an introduction to whip kick. | 3 -5 years |
| Level 1 | Swimmer 1 | These swimmers will become comfortable jumping into water with and without a lifejacket. They'll learn to open their eyes, exhale and hold their breath underwater. They'll work on floats, glides and kicking through the water on their front and back with assistance. | 6 - 15 years |
| Level 2 | Swimmer 2 | These swimmers will jump into deeper water, and learn to be comfortable falling sideways into the water wearing a lifejacket. They'll be able to support themselves at the surface without an aid, learn whip kick, swim on their front and back, and be introduced to flutter kick interval training. | 6 - 15 years |
| Level 3 |
Fail : Swimmer 2 Pass:Swimmer 3 |
These swimmers will do different entries, do in-water front somersaults and handstands. They'll work on front crawl, back crawl and whip kick. Flutter kick interval training increases. | 6 - 15 years |
| Level 4 | Swimmer 3 | These swimmers will swim underwater and lengths of front, back crawl, whip kick, and breaststroke arms with breathing. Their new challenges include the completion of the Canadian Swim to Survive® Standard. They'll cap it all off with front crawl sprints and front or back crawl interval training. | 6 - 15 years |
| Level 5 | Swimmer 4 | These swimmers will master entries, eggbeater kicks, and in-water backward somersaults. They'll refine their front and back crawl and breaststroke. Then they'll pick up the pace in sprints and two interval trainings. | 6 - 15 years |
| Level 6 | Swimmer 5 | These swimmers will rise to the challenge of aquatic skills including stride entries, compact jumps and lifesaving kicks like eggbeater and scissor kick. They'll develop strength and power in head-up breaststroke sprints. They'll easily swim lengths of front crawl, back crawl, and breaststroke, and improve fitness with swimming workouts. | 6 - 15 years |
| Level 7 | Swimmer 6 | These swimmers will rise to the challenge of aquatic skills including stride entries, lifesaving kicks like eggbeater and scissor kick. They'll develop strength and endurance through stroke developments and workouts. | 6 - 15 years |
| Level 8 |
Swimmer 7 |
Swimmers continue stroke development with 50 m swims of front crawl, back crawl, and breaststroke. Lifesaving Sport skills include a 25 m obstacle swim and a 15 m object carry. First aid focuses on assessment of conscious victims, contacting EMS and treatment for bleeding. Fitness improves in 350 m workouts and 100 m timed swims. | 6 - 15 years |
| Level 9 | Fail: Swimmer 7
Pass:Swimmer 8 |
Swimmers develop better strokes over 75 m swims of each stroke. They tackle Lifesaving Sport skills in a lifesaving medley, timed object support and rescue with a buoyant aid. First aid focuses on assessment of unconscious victims, treatment of victims in shock and obstructed airway procedures. Skill drills develop a strong lifesaving foundation. | 6 - 15 years |
| Level 10 |
Fail: Swimmer 9 Pass: Swimmer 10 |
Swimmers are challenged with 600 m workouts, 300 m timed swims and a 25 m object carry. Strokes are refined over 100 m swims. First aid focuses on treatment of bone, joint injuries and respiratory emergencies including asthma allergic reactions. Lifesaving skills include defence methods, victim removals and rolling over and supporting victims face up in shallow water. | 6 - 15 years |
| Adult |
Adult Swimmer |
The Adult Swimmer program is for beginners who may be just starting out or swimmers who just want help with their strokes. Within the Adult Swimmer curriculum, participants set their own goals to develop water confidence and smooth recognizable strokes. Targeted Water Smart® drowning prevention messages are an integral part of the Swim for Life® program. These messages are delivered in all Adult Swimmer levels. Instructors should be prepared to adapt these items and awards to accommodate the needs of adult learners and provide the flexibility for them to select the skills they want to learn to achieve their personal swimming goals. | 14 years + |
| n/a |
Fitness Swimmer |
The Fitness Swimmer program is for swimmers of any age who want to improve their overall physical fitness in the water. Fitness Swimmer provides a structured approach based on accepted training principles and practices including interval training. Participants set their own goals. | 12 - 16 years |