Swimming lessons: strokes, grades and tests
Lots of children in Japan go to a swimming school, スイミングスクール, once a week, and move up through numbered grades by passing tests. Schools teach swimming in summer too, and many pools run classes for adults. This lesson covers the strokes, the grades and what parents talk about. Tap to hear any line. The bar at the bottom plays a hands-free drill for walking.
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25 words for swimming lessons
Each card shows a word and a line you'd hear from a coach, another parent or your own child. Six reuse words from Everyday Japanese 1–5 and Lesson 1.
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Strokes, steps and grades
Children usually learn in this order: getting used to the water, gliding and kicking, then the four strokes.
| Japanese | Means | Note |
|---|
- Grades vary. Each swimming school has its own grade system, so at one school isn't the same as at another. At most schools, the number goes down as you move up.
- Make-up lessons. Most schools let you swap a missed lesson for another day, a . Check how far ahead you have to book it.
- Swimming at school. Many schools use a プールカード: on swimming days a parent writes the child's temperature and signs it.
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Four patterns to use today
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Say it in Japanese
Say each one out loud before you reveal the answer. Getting close counts.