Looking for last-minute swimming lessons? Here's what's available in Springfield, Nixa
Summer is in full swing and for the first year since before the pandemic, Springfield parks are offering a full schedule of swim lessons.
Jenny Edwards, Springfield-Greene County Park Board public information administrator, said since spring 2020, parks have had difficulty hiring enough lifeguard staff to train for swim lessons. She said parks have been working "very hard to rebuild the lifeguard core," and for the first time in four years, pools are adequately staffed for a full swim lesson schedule.
Few outdoor classes remain available in Springfield
As of Thursday, five swim lesson classes were still available at Springfield pools:
Level 3/4 Group Swim Lesson at Doling Pool: July 8-31 (5-5:30 p.m.)
Parent & Child Group Swim Lesson at Doling Pool: July 8-31 (6:30-7 p.m.)
Level 3/4 Group Swim Lesson at Fassnight Pool: July 8-Aug. 1 (11-11:30 a.m.)
Parent & Child Group Swim Lesson at Fassnight Pool: July 8-Aug. 1 (11-11:30 a.m.)
Preschool Group Swim Lesson at Fassnight Pool: July 8-Aug. 1 (11:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.)
Swim lessons include 30-minute instruction twice a week for four weeks.
More: Springfield's Fassnight Pool will reopen Thursday after repairs are completed
Level 3/4 swim lessons are intended for children ages 6-17 with previous swim lesson experience. Lessons focus on breath control and submersion, surface dives and different swim strokes, according to the park board website.
Parent and child swim lessons are intended for children six months through three years old. Parents and guardians are expected to get in the water with their children. These lessons focus on front and back glides and basic arm and leg actions in the water.
Preschool swim lessons are intended for children ages 4-5 and focus on glides, floats, bubbles and submersion, along with basic arm and leg actions, rotatory breathing and treading water.
Level 1 and 2 swim lessons have already sold out for the summer.
Registration for group swim lessons is available on the park board website. Registration is $50 for non-park board members and $40 for members.
For lessons, participants should wear comfortable swimwear they can easily move around in and bring their own towel. Goggles that do not cover the nose are allowed but are optional. Pool locker rooms are available for changing before and after each session.
More: Proposed Springfield aquatic center would address swim practice, water therapy needs
Here's what year-round indoor classes are available
Several other institutions offer year-round indoor swim lessons, too.
Diventures offers 10 different swim lessons, ranging from courses intended for babies who are getting acclimated to water to one-on-one adult classes. Most lessons meet once a week for one month. Registration is available on the Diventures website, starting at $115.
The Pat Jones YMCA also offers swim lessons, including group swim courses, private lessons, adaptive lessons for swimmers with diverse abilities and adult courses. As of Thursday, the following lessons were available for the remainder of the summer:
Saturday Parent/Child Lessons: July 6-27 (Saturdays from 9:45-10:15 a.m.)
Saturday Preschool Lessons: July 6-27 (Saturdays from 9:45-10:15 a.m.)
Saturday School-Age Lessons: July 6-27 (Saturdays from 9:45-10:15 a.m.)
MWF Parent/Child Lessons: July 8-19 (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9-9:30 a.m. and 9:45-10:15 a.m.) and July 22-Aug. 2 (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:45-10:15 a.m.)
MWF Preschool Lessons: July 8-19 (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9-9:30 a.m.) and July 22-Aug. 2 (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9-9:30 a.m.)
MWF School-Age Lessons: July 8-19 (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:45-10:15 a.m.) and July 22-Aug. 2 (Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 9:45-10:15 a.m.)
T/H Preschool Lessons: July 9-Aug. 1 (Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:30-6 p.m.)
T/H School-Age Lessons: July 9-Aug. 1 (Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:15-6:45 p.m.)
T/H Teen/Adult Lessons: July 9-Aug. 1 (Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7-7:30 p.m.)
Swim lessons include 30-minute instruction twice with frequency varying per course selected. Registration is available on the YMCA website. Registration costs vary.
Lessons at Nixa Aquatic Center
Following a year of closure, the Nixa Aquatic Center reopened this summer and is offering a variety of swim lessons. As of Thursday, seven swim lessons were available:
Tadpole Swim Lessons: July 1-11, July 15-25 and July 29-Aug. 8 (10:45-11:20 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.)
Intro Swim Lessons: July 1-11 (9:15-9:50 a.m., 10-10:35 a.m., 10:45-11:20 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.), July 15-25 (9:15-9:50 a.m., 10-10:35 a.m., 10:45-11:20 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.) and July 29-Aug. 8 (10-10:35 a.m., 10:45-11:20 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.)
Level 1 Penguins Swim Lessons: July 1-11 (9:15-9:50 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.), July 15-25 (9:15-9:50 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.) and July 29-Aug. 8 (9:15 a.m., 10-10:35 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.)
Level 2 Seals Swim Lessons: July 1-11 (9:15-9:50 a.m. 10-10:35 a.m. and 10:45-11:20 a.m.), July 15-25 (9:15-9:50 a.m., 10-10:35 a.m., 10:45-11:20 a.m.) and July 29-Aug. 8 (9:15-10 a.m., 10-10:35 a.m. and 10:45-11:20 a.m.)
Level 3 Dolphins Swim Lessons: July 1-11 (9:15-9:50 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.), July 15-25 (9:15-9:50 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.) and July 29-Aug. 8 (9:15-9:50 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 12:05 p.m.)
Level 4 Sting Ray Swim Lessons: July 1-11, July 15-25 and July 29-Aug. 8 (10:45-11:20 a.m.)
Level 5 Sharks Swim Lessons: July 1-11, July 15-25 and July 29-Aug. 8 (10-10:35 a.m.)
Swim lessons include 35-minute instruction four times a week for two weeks.
Tadpole swim lessons are intended for three-year-olds and focus on water games and songs, kickboards and jumping in the pool. Parents and guardians are required to assist their children with each activity. Intro swim lessons focus on blowing bubbles in the water, wall kicks, assisted kickboard kicks, bobbing and back floating on kickboards.
More: Nixa's swimming pool will reopen Monday after a yearlong closure for repairs
Level 1 Penguins focus on jumping in the pool and recovering on their own, putting their face in water, holding their breath without plugging their noses, going under water and blowing bubbles, according to the City of Nixa website. Students are also introduced to independent back floating.
Level 2 Seals build on Level 1, learning rhythmic breathing, kicking independently, back and front floating independently, gliding, crawling and flipping over. Seals also learn the crawl stroke, beginning backstroke and frog kick. Students are introduced to treading water, underwater swimming and deep water, too.
Level 3 Dolphins focus more on specific strokes, including freestyle, elementary backstroke, back crawl and frog kicking. Students will also learn how to tread water and dive. Level 4 Sting Rays build on the strokes they learned in Level 3, in addition to diving off the side of the pool and diving board. Students also learn how to retrieve objects from the depth of 5 feet and return to the surface and do the butterfly stroke.
Level 5 Sharks learn how to swim 50 yards of freestyle, breaststrokes and sidestrokes, tread for one minute, dive off blocks, conduct flip turns and dive competitively.
Registration for group swim lessons is available on the City of Nixa website. Registration is $60 for non-Nixa residents, $50 for residents who are not aquatic center members and $45 for residents who are aquatic center members.
Greta Cross is the trending topics reporter for the Springfield News-Leader. She has more than five years of journalism experience covering everything from Ozarks history to Springfield’s LGBTQIA+ community. Follow her on X and Instagram @gretacrossphoto. Story idea? Email her at gcross@news-leader.com.
This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Summer swimming lessons remain open at Springfield, Nixa pools
