Level 5 · Training like a swimmer

Vaquitas Advanced swim lessons for kids in Hallandale Beach

Vaquitas connects stroke technique with longer, more consistent swimming. Advanced swimmers work toward legal freestyle, backstroke and butterfly, begin breaststroke, and build the endurance for the last learn-to-swim level.

Age
Ages 6+
Lesson
40 min
Group
Up to 4 swimmers
Water
90°F, indoor
A boy in gold mirrored goggles swimming backstroke along the lane wall, one arm reaching overhead
The ladder

Where Vaquitas fits in

One of 11 levels between a first float and the swim team. Each one starts where the one before it ends.

  1. In the water with you
    1. Sea Cubs
    2. Tiger Sharks
    3. Blue Whales
  2. Swimming on their own
    1. Starfishes
    2. Tadpoles
  3. Strokes and distance
    1. Super Frogs
    2. Ducklings
    3. Guppies
    4. Sea Otters
  4. Training like a swimmer
    1. Vaquitas
    2. Seals
What they learn

What Vaquitas work on

Strokes swum to competition rules, and the stamina to keep them that way.

  • Legal freestyle and backstroke

    Both strokes swum the way competition rules require, length after length.

  • Legal butterfly

    Butterfly with the timing and kick the rules ask for.

  • First breaststroke

    An introduction to breaststroke, the fourth competitive stroke.

  • Endurance

    Longer swims, with the stamina to keep every stroke clean.

The class

How a class works

Three strokes already started

For swimmers who swim freestyle with side breathing and backstroke, and have been introduced to butterfly.

40-minute classes

Longer than the levels before, to leave room for distance and endurance.

Up to 4 swimmers per coach

A swim evaluation places each swimmer in the safest, most productive advanced class.

$132 per month · 4 sessions

One monthly price for a place in the group, at the same time each week.

Weekly schedule

Class times for Vaquitas

10 classes a week, 40 minutes each, as scheduled in our booking system. Booking shows which of them have a place.

Monday

  • 4:05 PM
  • 4:45 PM

Tuesday

  • 4:45 PM

Wednesday

  • 4:05 PM
  • 5:25 PM
  • 6:05 PM

Thursday

  • 4:45 PM
  • 5:25 PM

Saturday

  • 11 AM

Sunday

  • 10 AM
Coaches

Who teaches Vaquitas

The coaches teaching Vaquitas classes on the current schedule, all working from the same curriculum.

Portrait of Valerie Vank

Valerie Vank

Head Coach · Vaquitas & Seals

  • Lifeguard
Portrait of Kateryna Bolhova

Kateryna Bolhova

Swim Instructor · Beginner Confidence

  • Red Cross WSI
Portrait of Alexander Inzhevatkin

Alexander Inzhevatkin

Swim Coach · All Ages

  • Red Cross WSI
  • Lifeguard
  • CPR
Portrait of Valeriia Shevel

Valeriia Shevel

Swim Instructor · Little Swimmers 4–6

  • Red Cross WSI
Moving up

Ready for the next level

Swimmers move up when they swim the required strokes legally and consistently and meet the endurance standard for Seals.

What the coach looks for

  • Legal freestyle, backstroke and butterfly
  • A developing breaststroke
  • Endurance to the Seals standard
Next level

Seals

Ages 6+

Ready for swim team

About Seals
Good to know

Before the first class

  • Placement follows demonstrated skills as well as age.
  • A swim evaluation confirms the right advanced class before the first lesson.
  • Close adult supervision stays essential around every body of water.

Fun fact

A very exclusive neighborhood

The vaquita is one of the smallest members of the whale, dolphin and porpoise family, and has the smallest range of any of them.

Source: NOAA Fisheries, Vaquita species profile

Common questions

What people ask before they book

What does a legal stroke mean?

A stroke swum the way competition rules require, so it would count in a race. Vaquitas works freestyle, backstroke and butterfly to that standard, length after length, and introduces breaststroke, the fourth competitive stroke. These advanced swim lessons in Hallandale Beach also build the endurance to keep every stroke clean over longer swims.

Is my child ready for advanced swim lessons?

If they swim freestyle with side breathing and backstroke, and have tried butterfly, they are close. A swim evaluation confirms the level and places each swimmer in the safest, most productive advanced class before the first lesson. Placement follows demonstrated skills as well as age.

How long are the classes?

40 minutes, longer than the earlier levels, to leave room for distance and endurance work. The extra time goes into longer swims, so swimmers build the stamina to keep every stroke clean length after length. Each class has up to 4 swimmers per coach and meets at the same time each week, at $132 a month.

What comes after Vaquitas?

Seals, the last level before swim team. Swimmers move up when they swim freestyle, backstroke and butterfly legally and consistently, have a developing breaststroke and meet the endurance standard for Seals. Seals then adds legal turns, a 100-yard IM and the habits of a team practice.
Next step

Strokes that count

Bring a swimsuit, goggles and a towel. An evaluation on the first day places your swimmer in the right advanced class.