MSS Swimming Levels Overview
Our MSS program is designed for children aged 6 to 12 years old, focusing on developing swim techniques, endurance, and water safety skills. Each level ensures swimmers gain confidence, learn essential skills, and progress towards advanced techniques and lifesaving practices.
MSS Beginner
Age Group: 6 to 12 years old
Focus: Introduction to swimming basics and water safety.
This level develops water confidence, essential swim skills, and foundational safety practices through engaging activities and hands-on instruction.
Test requirements:
- Rhythmic breathing 5 times
- Front float and recovery 3 sec
- Back float and recovery 3 sec
- Front glide 5 sec
- Front glide with kick 5m
- Back glide 5 sec
- Roll-over glides 5 sec (assisted)
- Front swim — 5 m, (Kick and using big arm no breathing)
- Flutter kick 5m (assisted)
- Facility/Site orientation
- Stop! Look! Ask!
- Shallow water entries and exits
- Submerge head
- Exhale through mouth and/or nose
- Distance swim 5m
MSS-1
Age Group: 6 to 12 years old
Focus: Building swim endurance and introducing independent swimming techniques.
This level enhances swim distance and introduces side glides and unassisted swimming. Safety skills focus on life jacket use and underwater breath control.
Test requirements:
- Rhythmic breathing — 10 times, 2 ways
- Front glide with kick — 10 m
- Back glide with kick — 10 m
- Side glide with flutter kick 10m (assisted)
- Front swim — 10 m, big arm with breathing: Alternating breathing arm cycles
- (one arm stroke with a breath, next arm stroke without a breath)
- Roll-over glide with flutter kick 10m
- Back swim — 10 m, kick with sculling hands
- Facility/Site orientation
- EMS/9-1-1
- Introduction to PFDs/Lifejackets
- Weight transfer, shallow water
- Deep-water activities (assisted)
- Distance swim10
MSS-2
Age Group: 6 to 12 years old
Focus: Strengthening swim techniques and underwater skills.
This level introduces more advanced combinations, such as front and side swimming, pencil glides, and basic whip kicks. Safety focuses on retrieving objects underwater and deep-water comfort.
Test requirements:
- Rhythmic breathing 15 times
- Front glide with flutter kick 15m
- Back swim — 15 m, kick with shoulder roll
- Whip kick on the back 10m
- Side glide with flutter kick 10m
- Front swim Front Crawl: 15 m
- Front crawl 15m (bilateral breathing one breath every 3 strokes)
- When and where to swim
- PFDs/Lifejackets, deep water
- Deep water float 5 sec
- Jump in, change direction, return to safety, deep water
- Surface support/treading, deep water 20 sec
- Sitting dive, change direction, return to safety
- Distance swim30m
MSS-3
Age Group: 6 to 12 years old
Focus: Improving swim strokes and introducing deep-water entries.
This level focuses on breathing techniques during front crawl, back crawl, and unassisted whip kick. Safety skills emphasize entries like kneeling dives and forward roll entry into deep water.
Test requirements:
- Rhythmic breathing 20 times (front crawl specific)
- Front/side glide combo 30m
- Back swim with shoulder roll 30m
- Front crawl 30m (bilateral breathing (one breath every 3 strokes) with high-elbow recovery)
- Elementary Backstroke 30m
- Combine Distance Swim: 75 m ( Front crawl / Back crawl / Elementary back stroke )
- Show how to contact EMS/9-1-1
- Self-safety –safe diving
- Introduction to sculling, shallow water
- Kneeling dive
- Surface support/treading water, deep water 45 sec
- Distance swim — 75 m
MSS-4
Age Group: 6 to 12 years old
Focus: Mastering advanced swim strokes and underwater swimming.
This level emphasizes endurance, technique improvement, and advanced skills like dolphin kicks and head-up front crawl. Safety includes standing dives and swimming underwater.
Test requirements:
- Rhythmic breathing 20 times (2 ways)
- Front crawl 60m
- Back crawl 60m
- Elementary back stroke 40m
- Whip kick on the front 25m (assisted)
- Dolphin kick 10m
- How to be a safe boater
- When and where to go on ice
- Distressed swimmer recognition and simulation
- Throwing assist without a line
- Head-first sculling on back 10m
- Tread water, deep water 1.5 min
- Front dive
- Stride dive
- Head-first sculling on back 5m
- Distance swim 150m
MSS-L5
Age Group: 6 to 12 years old
Focus: Fitness, lifesaving skills, and advanced swim endurance.
This level combines fitness training, obstacle swimming, and lifesaving techniques. Swimmers refine advanced strokes like breaststroke and scissor kicks while practicing lifesaving responses.
Test requirements:
- Front crawl 100m
- Back crawl 100m
- Elementary back stroke 80m
- Breaststroke 80m
- Dolphin kick 15m
- Sidestroke: 25 m (unassisted)
- Obstacle swims 25m
- Head up front crawl 15m
- Lifesaving kick 10m
- Take care of external bleeding
- Fitness training 350m Tuck jumped (cannonball) Swim with a Buddy
- Eggbeater/tread water 3 min
- Mild and severe airway obstruction
- Choking rescue, mild and severe airway obstruction, conscious person
- Throwing assist with a line
- Reaching assist with rescue equipment
- Stride entry
- Distance swim 300m (10 mins)