Swim Lessons
COVID-19 Swim Lesson Overview
(February 18, 2021) Our American Red Cross Learn-to-Swim program is designed to help guests of all ages and ability levels become safe and proficient in the water, and designed to ensure social distancing during COVID-19 Phases. Swim lessons during COVID-19 at the Mount Rainier Pool include the following changes:
- FACEMASKS AND SOCIAL DISTANCING:
- Parents and students are required to wear a facemask until entering water (Bucket will be provided at every station for safe placement of masks while swimming).
- Parents have the option to keep facemasks on while in water.
- Limit one parent spectator per student.
- Students (and parents) will maintain a distance of 6 feet apart at all times.
- Instructors will wear facemasks and facesheilds while teaching.
- Instructors will teach from the deck and maintain a distance of 6 ft from each student.
- Each student will have a dedicated station with all materials being used for the day, a bucket for holding facemask and a place to hold clothes and towels.
- Parents and students are required to wear a facemask until entering water (Bucket will be provided at every station for safe placement of masks while swimming).
- CLASS STRUCTURE AND OCCUPANCY:
- Each class will have a max of 3 students, level 2 and under will have a parent in the water with student.
- Classes will be spread out so as not to encounter each other.
- ENTRY AND TIMING OF CLASSES:
- Students will be let into the facility up to 5 minutes before classes begin.
- Temperature Checks and COVID Waiver must be completed on entry of facility.
- Students will arrive on deck to remove clothing and prepare to get into water.
- Classes will have a 15-minute sanitizing and organizing time between them.
- See section below for exact class times.
- SHOWERING AND LOCKERROOMS:
- All students/parents entering water must arrive already showered and changed into swimsuits.
- All swimmers must leave without showering, exiting through the locker rooms without changing preferred.
Tuesday and Thursday Evenings, 4:30-7:15pm – NEW!
Class Dates |
Current Student Registration |
New Student Registration |
March 2-March 25 (7 Lessons) **No Class March 16. |
Tuesday, February 23* | Thursday, February 25* |
April | To Be Determined*** | To Be Determined*** |
May | To Be Determined*** | To Be Determined*** |
June | To Be Determined*** | To Be Determined*** |
* Phone registration opens at 1:00pm each day and in-person registration opens at 4:00pm.
**No Class March 16 due to Mount Rainier High School Meets.
***MRP staff will use each session to better evaluate future lessons.
Tuesday and Thursday (March) Class Times -NEW!
Class |
||
4:30-5:00pm | Pre-Level 1/2 Combined* | Level 3 |
5:15-5:45pm | Level 1* | Level 4 |
6:00-6:30pm | Pre-Level 3* | Level 6 |
6:45-7:15pm | Level 2* | Level 5 |
*Pre-Levels and Levels 2 and below require a parent to be in the water with the student.
Class Pricing
Class Dates |
Parent & Child |
All Other Classes |
8-session Class | $47 ($60 NR) | $64 ($78 NR) |
*7-session Class | $41 ($53 NR) | $56 ($68 NR) |
NR = Non-Resident. Residents of Des Moines and Normandy Park receive discount for helping subsidize pool operations.
Scholarships
Scholarships are available for all swim lessons. Scholarships must be completed and approved before you register for swim lessons. For more information on scholarships, click here.
Future Classes
Our next set of classes will be public posted the week before the end of the previous session. For updates, please sign-up for our email notification system at www.mtrainierpool.com.
Private Lessons are scheduled in one-class sessions at various times throughout each week.
Semi-Private Lessons are also available for groups with two or more students who wish to participate in the same privately instructed class. Semi-private Lessons are priced per student for each class session.
Private Lesson (one student) $ 26 Residents*/$36 Non-Residents
Semi-Private Lesson (two or more students; price per student:)
$ 14 Residents*/$20 Non-Residents (Per Participant)
For more information, please call Lauryne Bartlett, Aquatics Coordinator at: 206.824.4722, stop by the pool!
Parent & Child: Ages 6 m - 3 years
- Enter and exit the water safety
- Feel comfortable in the water
- Submerge and explore breath control
- Explore floating on the back and front
- Change body position in the water
- Play safely in the water
- Experience wearing a life jacket
Parents, you also learn!:
- How to hold and support your child in the water
- How to select and fit a life jacket for your child
- Valuable water safety information to make your family safe in and around the water
Once infants or young children are able to comfortably perform the skills in Level 1, they should progress to Parent & Child Aquatics Level 2. It is common for infants or young children to participate in several sessions of Level 1 before moving on to Level 2. That is okay! It is not important how quickly they move through a level, but that they acquire each skill.
Preschool Aquatics Level 1: Ages 4 - 6 years
- Entering the water independently using the ladder, steps, or side and travel at least 5 yards.
- Submerging mouth and blowing bubbles for at least 3 seconds.
- Exiting the water safely.
- Gliding on front for at least 2 body lengths.
- Rolling to back and floating for 3 seconds.
- Recovering to a vertical position.
It is quite common for children to participate in several sessions of Level 1 before they are able to successfully demonstrate all the skills. That’s okay! It is not important how quickly they move through a level, but that they acquire each skill.
Preschool Aquatics Level 2: Ages 4 -6 years
Some of the milestones in Level 2 include:
- Gliding on front at least 2 body lengths.
- Rolling to back, floating on back for 15 seconds then recovering to a vertical position.
- Gliding on back for at least 2 body lengths.
- Rolling to front, floating for 5 seconds then recovering to a vertical position.
- Swimming using combined arm and leg actions on front for 3 body lengths.
- Rolling to back, floating for 15 seconds, rolling to front then continuing to swim on front for 3 body lengths.
It is quite common for children to participate in several sessions of Preschool Aquatics
Level 2 before they are able to successfully demonstrate all the skills. That’s okay! It is
not important how quickly they move through a level, but that they acquire each skill.
Preschool Aquatics level 3: Ages 4 - 6 years
- Stepping from the side into chest-deep water.
- Moving into a front float for 15 seconds, swimming on front and/or back for 5 body lengths.
- Moving into a back float for 15 seconds, rolling to front then recovering to a vertical position.
- Pushing off and swimming using combined arm and leg actions on front and/or back for 5 body lengths.
- Rolling to back, floating for 15 seconds, rolling to front then continuing to swim for 5 body lengths.
It is quite common for children to participate in several sessions of Level 3 before they are able to successfully demonstrate all the skills. That’s okay! It is not important how quickly they move through a level, but that they acquire each skill.
Learn-to-Swim Level 1: Ages 7-14 years
In Learn to Swim Level 1 – Introduction to Water Skills, your child is introduced to basic skills as the foundation for future skills. Certain milestones are necessary for successful completion of Learn to Swim Level 1, including:
- Entering the water independently using ladder, steps, or side
- Traveling at least 5 yards, bobbing 5 times, then safely exiting the water
- Gliding on front supported at least 2 body lengths
- Rolling to a back float for 5 seconds with support
- Recovering to a vertical position with support
It is common for children to participate in several sessions of Learn to Swim Level 1 before they successfully demonstrate each skill. That is okay! It is not important how quickly they move through a level, but that they acquire each skill.
Learn-to-Swim Level 2: 7 - 14 years
- Stepping from the side into chest-deep water.
- Moving into a front float for 15 seconds, swimming on front and/or back for 5 body lengths, then safely exiting the water.
- Moving into a back float for 15 seconds, rolling to front then recovering to a vertical position.
- Pushing off and swimming using combined arm and leg actions on front for 5 body lengths, rolling to back and float for 15 seconds, then roll to the front then continue swimming for 5 body lengths.
It is common for children to participate in several sessions of Learn to Swim Level 2 before they successfully demonstrate each skill. That is okay! It is not important how quickly they move through a level, but that they acquire each skill.
Learn-to-Swim Level 3: Ages 7 - 14 years
- Jumping into deep water from the side.
- Swimming the front crawl and/or elementary backstroke for 25 yards.
- Maintaining position by treading or floating for 1 minute.
- Swimming front crawl for 15 yards and swimming elementary backstroke for 15 yards.
It is common for children to participate in several sessions of Learn to Swim Level 3 before they successfully demonstrate each skill. That is okay! It is not important how quickly they move through a level, but that they acquire each skill.
Learn-to-Swim Level 4: Ages 7-14 years
- Swimming the front crawl for 25 yards.
- Swimming the elementary backstroke for 25 yards.
- Swimming the breaststroke for 15 yards.
- Swimming the back crawl for 15 yards.
- Swimming 3-5 body lengths underwater without hyperventilating.
- Open turns on the front and back.
It is common for children to participate in several sessions of Learn to Swim Level 4 before they successfully demonstrate each skill. That is okay! It is not important how quickly they move through a level, but that they acquire each skill.
Learn-to-Swim Level 5: Ages 7-14 years
- Performing a shallow-angle dive into deep water.
- Swimming the front crawl for 50 yards.
- Swimming elementary backstroke for 50 yards.
- Swimming the breaststroke for 25 yards.
- Swimming the back crawl for 25 yards.
It is common for students to participate in several sessions of Learn to Swim Level 5 before they successfully demonstrate each skill. That is okay! It is not important how quickly they move through a level, but that they acquire each skill.
Learn-to-Swim Level 6: Ages 7 - 14 years
- Swimming 500 yards continuously using any 3 strokes of choice, swimming at least 50 yards of each stroke.
- Jumping into deep water and performing a survival float for 5 minutes and a back float for 5 minutes.
- Performing a surface dive, retrieving an object from the bottom of the pool at a depth of 7-10 feet, returning to the surface and returning to the starting point.
It is common for children to participate in several sessions of Learn to Swim Level 6 before they successfully demonstrate each skill. That is okay! It is not important how quickly they move through a level, but that they acquire each skill. Once participant complete Learn-to-Swim Level 6 they may want to continue with Learn to Swim Level 6 to further refine their strokes or are eligible to participate in our Competitive Swimming class. Participants that are 11-14 years of age are also eligible to participate in our Aquatic Volunteer Academy, which is the first step to becoming a volunteer junior lifeguard and swim lesson instructor aide.
Adult Swim Lessons: Ages 15 +
Beginner Swimmers will learn fundamental swimming techniques and how to be comfortable in water. They will use kickboards and other equipment to augment skills as they progress, and for practicing skills, such as alternating kicking and stroke-work. Instructor-led drills and demonstrations will help swimmers grasp concepts in alternating stroking and kicking.
The beginner course includes skills such as:
- Safe Entry and Exit of the Water
- Getting comfortable in shallow and deep water
- Stepping or jumping from side in deep water
- Bobbing to Safety
- Floating and maintaining body position on front
- Floating and maintaining body position on back
- Rolling from front to back and back to front
- Changing from a vertical to horizontal position on back and front
- Maintaining a horizontal body position in the water
- Treading using arm and leg actions
- Alternating and Simultaneous Kicking Actions
- Gliding on Front, with and without Kicking Actions
- Rotary Breathing
- Introduction to Crawlstroke and stroke development
- Introduction to Breaststroke
- Introduction to Scissors Kick
- Introduction to Elementary Backstroke
- Changing from a vertical to horizontal position on back and front
- All registration is in-person or by phone. Registration starts at 4:00pm on weekdays and 8:00am on Saturdays
- No online registration. All registration is in-person or over the phone.
- All classes are 30 minutes long unless otherwise noted.
- Three students must be registered to run a class. In cases where only one student is registered, parents can opt to transfer to another class, get a credit on their account, request a refund, or pay for the second student.
- Children learn better in the appropriate level. Swim tests are available for proper lesson placement, please call us to schedule an appointment for placement testing.
- Don’t miss out on all the exciting opportunities at the Mount Rainier Pool! Please note that classes fill up quickly. Registration is done on a first-come-first-served basis through our online registration page. Payment is due at the time of registration
Click here to view more information on scholarship opportunities.
Mandatory (Free) Placement Tests
DURING FAMILY SWIMS
All participants are required to complete a placement test before registering for classes. There are no appointments as tests will be done drop-in on a first-come, first- serve basis. We will stay until all tests are completed. Parent or Guardian must be present during test. Placement tests are held during Family Swims. For more information, please scroll down this page.
*Note – Mandatory swim tests are not required for Parent & Child, Preschool 1 and Level 1 classes.
Click here to view schedule for Family Swims to complete your placement tests.
Cancellation and Refund Policy
Wait List Procedures
Make-ups
Do you have more questions or would like to speak to someone in person? Our Aquatics Coordinator, Lauryne Newman, is here to help. You can call her directly at (206) 824-4722 or email her at lauryne.newman@desmoinespool.org.