Dive in with Northeastern! Aquatics Program

This level is for 3-5 year olds ONLY, who cannot get themselves, unaided by an adult or flotation device, across the pool (approx 40 feet). If your child is 6 or older, DO NOT sign up for this level. What we teach the younger beginner swimmers is not as effective on older beginners. Ages 6 and older should be entered as “Advanced Beginner”. There will be a special subgroup in Advanced Beginner, specific to their abilities. The goal in the beginner level is to get your child to jump in, surface on the back, swim across the pool, and grab the opposite wall-all without being touched or helped by the teacher.

If your child cannot swim freestyle, breathing to the side for a distance of 40 feet or more, this is the level for your child. We will evaluate all Advanced Beginners the first day to divide them into one of three categories (But for now, you choose advanced beginner).

• Ages 5 and under - who have successfully completed our Beginner program and swim successfully on their backs. In this level, children will have their back swimming skills reinforced—this is their safety position—while gradually teaching them to roll over onto their front and take freestyle arm strokes. This encourages a natural rolling motion, rather than the head out style found in dog paddle or with floatation devices, which will be used for them to breathe. And they’ll always have their back swimming skills for self-rescue.
• Novice - who are age 6 and older, but are absolute beginners. By starting a swimming program a little later, there will be more resistance and some fear at this level than in any other group. The process can be slow (but will be slower every year that they are able to rationalize their fear), but hang in there; they need to be safe, too, and the going doesn’t get easier, but harder the older they get.
• High End - Kids of any age who can demonstrate some semblance of the freestyle motion, but who do not yet incorporate breathing to the side without having to stop their arm stroke to get a breath. To move onto Intermediate, rhythmic breathing to the side must be mastered at least the width of the pool (approx. 40 feet).

Here proper breathing is reinforced, while slowly building endurance. More swimming in small groups, rather than strictly 1-1 turns with the instructor as in previous skill levels will aid in the repetition to gain the endurance to swim 25 yards of freestyle, 25 yards of backstroke, and proper treading water - the skills necessary to move onto Advanced I or II. Diving will also be introduced at this level if adequate progress is being made on the other skills.

Skills will be refined with a variety of drills designed to break the strokes down into smaller components to advance the whole stroke to a competitive level in both knowledge and execution. 

This is similar to Advanced I, but working with Breaststroke and Butterfly. While Advanced I is not a prerequisite for Advanced II, we do recommend a strong freestyle and backstroke before taking on these two more difficult strokes. If the thought of joining the competitive swim team is in the future, knowledge of these two strokes is essential.