KRA Swim Lesson Mission
To provide high-quality swim instruction designed to foster strong fundamentals, self-confidence, and a life-long love of swimming within a vibrant community.
Registration
Group swim lessons are 45 mins long and are held four times a week: Monday - Thursday. Friday will be reserved as a make-up day. We must have at least two swimmers registered to run a class. If only one or two swimmers attend a class on a given day, the instructor will treat the lesson as a private or semi-private lesson and will only teach for 30 minutes.
We recommend enrolling your child in swim lessons in as many weeks as you are able as consistency is key for your child to make sustainable progress.
Selecting the right lesson level for your child
All children in swim lessons must be potty-trained and at least three years old. Group lessons are taught at four different proficiency levels ranging from blowing bubbles to swimming full lengths of freestyle and backstroke without assistance. There is no formal evaluation process, unless requested. For your child to have the best possible experience, be honest about the ability of your swimmer. Review the Level Guidelines and consider the skills in each level. Every skill must be mastered in a lower level before moving to the next level. When signing up for a level, make sure that your child can do every skill in the previous level.
What times are lessons offered?
We are offering multiple sessions and levels throughout the summer. Group swim lessons will be offered in the morning and afternoon to accommodate different family schedules and some lessons will be scheduled during swim team practices so that younger siblings can take lessons while older children are in swim practice.
Group Lesson Schedule as of 8/4/24 HERE (pdf)
Who is teaching swim lessons?
Our staff is composed of one group swim coordinator and six talented instructors, some of whom are former Kanawha swimmers. We have so much home-grown talent in these kids and they can offer a lot to the next generation of Kanawha swimmers. We’ve selected these enthusiastic, positive individuals because of their abilities to interact well with kids, knowledge of swimming technique and water safety and their love for Kanawha and swimming.
What are parent expectations?
You should remain at KRA during your child's lesson. We ask that you not sit next to the pool where your child is taking lessons as this is a distraction for you child and impacts instruction. A child builds confidence when they learn to handle the swim lesson on their own. On the first day of lessons a picture may be taken of the child ready for instruction, but once class begins there should be no other pictures or videos taken without permission.
Is private instruction available?
All swim team coaches and group swim lesson instructors are available to teach private lessons starting when the pool opens for the season. Parents will need to contact the individual instructors to set up lesson times. Parents can find instructor contact info on Group Swim instructor tab. Once a time has been decided the instructor will enter the lesson into our online system and parents will be able to go online to register and pay for the lesson.
Cost: private lesson = $36 (1 swimmer for 30 minutes); semi-private lesson = $40 (2 swimmers for 30 minutes - if 2 families are sharing the semi-private lesson, both families will pay $20)
Private instruction is available to non-members. The cost of the lessons are the same, however, there is a $5 guest fee that must be paid by cash or check each time a child comes for instruction.
Are there refunds or credits or makeups?
If one lesson is canceled due to weather there will be no refunds, however, we will offer a makeup lesson on Friday of that same week. The lesson time will remain the same as Monday - Thursday. If more than one class is missed in a week because of weather, the class will be pro-rated and a refund given for days missed in excess of one day. Swim instructors will contact families by phone/text if their class is cancelled. The decision to cancel will be made by the instructor in consultation with a pool manager and/or swim team representative. Make sure a cell phone number is entered when registering a child for lessons so that you can easily be reached if classes need to be cancelled.
Because of our compressed swim lesson schedule and high demand for classes, we do not give refunds or credit for any reason other than weather. With our small student to teacher ratios, we don't offer the ability to makeup classes from one session to another unless there is room with the same teacher at the same level. If a class is cancelled because there are not enough swimmers to make a class, we try first to find another class at the same level and a time that is agreeable. If we cannot place your child in a time that works, we will refund your class.
Group lesson pricing for members and non-members
Group Lessons are $50 per child for members and $70 per child for non-members. Non-members will sign up and pay the $50 registration online to reserve your spot, then must bring $20 in the form of a check (made out to KRA) or cash to the first class for that session.
How do I offer suggestions?
We want your input for enhancements and changes to our program so that our offerings reflect the needs of our membership. Please feel free to reach out to our group swim lesson coordinator with any suggestions.
Contact the Group Lesson Coordinator HERE
We look forward to a great Summer Season!
