What this level looks like
Swimmers with strokes taking shape who need endurance and lane skills.
A 30-minute group lesson, five swimmers to one instructor, in the training pool, kept above 90 degrees.
From here the timeline lengthens. Solid stroke mechanics in strokes like freestyle and backstroke generally take 50 to 80 or more lessons overall, spread across the Independent Swimmer and Advanced milestones.
Penguin is complete when a swimmer brings big arms out of the water, swims continuous laps, circle swims and stays in their lane.
Parent questions
What comes before Penguin?
Puffin, where streamline and flutter kick are introduced.
What is circle swimming?
Sharing a lane by swimming up one side and back down the other, the way a practice or a meet warm-up runs.
What comes after Penguin?
Sea Lion, the first level of the Advanced and Competitive Swimmer milestone.
Skills in Penguin
Check them off as your swimmer earns them, one skill at a time, before moving up the Journey.
Where Penguin sits
Ten levels across three milestones. Tap any level to open its page.
