Orono Community Education

Fundamental Aquatics Skills MUST BE AT LEAST 5 YEARS OLD. Comfortable in water, submerges head and floats independently. Course Content: This level allows students to succeed in the fundamentals of aquatic skills. These skills include: front, jellyfish and tuck floats, roll from front to back and back to front, change direction of travel while swimming on front or back, treading of water, combined arm and leg actions on front and back (working towards moving independently) and age-appropriate water safety topics. Exit Skills: Step from side into chest-deep water, move into a front float for 5 seconds, roll to back, float for 5 seconds then return to vertical position. Move into a back float for 5 seconds, roll to front then recover to a vertical position. Push off and swim using combined arm and leg actions on front for 5 body lengths, roll to back, float for 15 seconds, roll to the front then continue swimming for 5 body lengths. Curriculum and levels are based on the Red Cross' Learn-to-Swim Program. For questions about what level your child should register for, refer to our descriptions. If you are a new family to Orono Community Education’s swimming lessons, we encourage you to schedule a swimming pre-assessment to determine the best level for your swimmer. Pre-assessments take place at the Orono pool. Instructors will guide your swimmer through a set of skills in a 15-minute period. Pre-assessments will take place in early December 2024. Contact Tara St. Martin to schedule a pre-assessment at tara.st.martin@orono.k12.mn.us. Note: Attending a pre-assessment does not guarantee a spot in lessons. Spots fill quickly.

Stroke Improvement Comfortable in deep water, swims at least 15 yards coordinated: front crawl, back crawl and knows breaststroke and dolphin kick. Course Content: Develops confidence and improves on Level 3 skills. Skills include: headfirst entries from side in compact and stride positions, swim under water, feet first surface dive, front and back crawl, elementary backstroke, breaststroke, sidestroke and butterfly, flutter and dolphin kicks on back and age-appropriate water safety topics. Exit Skills: Perform a feet first entry into deep water, swim front crawl for 25 yards, change direction and position as necessary and swim elementary backstroke for 25 yards. Swim breaststroke for 15 yards, change direction and position as necessary and swim back crawl for 15 yards. Curriculum and levels are based on the Red Cross' Learn-to-Swim Program. For questions about what level your child should register for, refer to our descriptions. If you are a new family to Orono Community Education’s swimming lessons, we encourage you to schedule a swimming pre-assessment to determine the best level for your swimmer. Pre-assessments take place at the Orono pool. Instructors will guide your swimmer through a set of skills in a 15-minute period. Pre-assessments will take place in early December 2024. Contact Tara St. Martin to schedule a pre-assessment at tara.st.martin@orono.k12.mn.us. Note: Attending a pre-assessment does not guarantee a spot in lessons. Spots fill quickly.

Stroke Development Comfortable in deep water (5ft+), swims at least 5 yards on front with a coordinated stroke independently, swims at least 5 yards on back with a coordinated stroke independently. Course Content: Builds on fundamental skills with practice and distance and introduces skills used in deeper water. Skills include: headfirst entries from side in sitting and kneeling positions, bobbing while moving toward safety, rotary breathing, survival float, flutter, dolphin and scissors kick, front crawl, elementary backstroke, and age-appropriate water safety topics. Exit Skills: Jump into deep water from the side, tread or float for 1 minute then proceed to an exit point by swimming the front crawl and/or elementary backstroke for 15 yards. Push off in a streamline position then swim front crawl for 15 yards, change position and direction as necessary, then swim elementary backstroke for 15 yards before exiting the water. Curriculum and levels are based on the Red Cross' Learn-to-Swim Program. For questions about what level your child should register for, refer to our descriptions. If you are a new family to Orono Community Education’s swimming lessons, we encourage you to schedule a swimming pre-assessment to determine the best level for your swimmer. Pre-assessments take place at the Orono pool. Instructors will guide your swimmer through a set of skills in a 15-minute period. Pre-assessments will take place in early December 2024. Contact Tara St. Martin to schedule a pre-assessment at tara.st.martin@orono.k12.mn.us. Note: Attending a pre-assessment does not guarantee a spot in lessons. Spots fill quickly.