Learn-to-Swim Program

The Red Cross has developed swimming courses for children and adults, allowing everyone at every level to feel comfortable in the water.

At the Red Cross, our swimming classes for kids are tailored to the needs of each child, so that he or she can progress at a comfortable pace.

In the Learn-to-Swim program, parents or guardians of children up to 5 years of age will actively participate in their kids’ swim lessons.

The Learn-to-Swim program focuses on building skills one step at a time and building confidence in the water.

During their swim lessons, children will spend time on the following six levels:

●Level 1 — Introduction to Water Skills: Students will learn how to feel comfortable in the water and safely enjoy it.

●Level 2 — Fundamentals of Aquatic Skills: Children will learn basic swimming skills.

●Level 3 — Stroke Development: Additional guided practice will help students improve their skills.

●Level 4 — Stroke Improvement: Kids will gain confidence during swim lessons, improve their strokes and gain additional aquatic skills.

●Level 5 — Stroke Refinement: Guidance allows kids to refine their strokes and become more efficient swimmers.

●Level 6 — Swimming and Skill Proficiency: Students will learn to swim with ease and efficiency, and gain the ability to swim smoothly over greater distances.

Please click here to find a suitable swimming pool to register for the Red Cross swimming courses.

Parents enrolling their kids in swim lessons may also wish to take a CPR and First Aid class. This way, you can deliver care to others during medical emergencies. With online, in-person and our Mixed Simulation Learning courses, you can choose one that suits your schedule.

When I was a teenage boy, I helped out at my parents’ furniture store in a charming New England town. The store was known for its wide range of products. One summer holiday, I was busy assisting customers to find what they needed. I always greeted them warmly at the entrance, and customers appreciated it as excellent service. I also assisted them to carry heavy things to their cars, but my parents strictly instructed me not to accept tips or anything else.

One day, an elderly lady visited the store. At first sight, I was drawn to her. She was neatly(整洁地) dressed and had a graceful presence, looking polite and friendly. She lived in a senior citizen apartment nearby and wanted to buy some chairs for her garden. After a short search, I found some chairs that met her needs. She bought two chairs and asked if I could help send them to her home just a stone’s throw away. Recognizing her old age, I agreed and carried the chairs to her building.

Upon arrival, she welcomed me warmly and showed me where to place the chairs. Before I could thank her for shopping in my parents’ store, she shocked me by placing a handful of candy in my hand. Then, to my amazement, she gave me an educational book. I politely rejected it, explaining that I couldn’t accept any presents. However, she put the book in my hand and said with a smile,” If your parents don’t want you to have this, just don’t tell them. Let me tell them instead.” We both laughed, and I thanked her sincerely. I decided to follow her advice, and she told my parents that she had given me a book as a reward for my hard work. With the book, I learned a lot and started my lifelong love for reading.

Reflecting on this experience, I often think of the elderly lady and hope she will live a joyful life surrounded by loved ones forever. Her generosity and humor have left a lasting impression on me.

The “selfie” (自拍照) has enjoyed great popularity as a way to record a moment in time, but this coming decade is bringing some big competition: 3D-printed clones. doob^TM is a full-service 3D tech company that specializes in creating a photo-realistic 3D-printed figurine (小塑像) of yourself.

You step into the 3D scanner (扫描仪) with 54 digital cameras that are accurately placed from head to toe and take a 360-degree image in a flash. “Once you take a scan, we use a process, which is taking still images all of the same moment, and then transform that into a high-definition 3D file,” Anderson, the CEO of doob^TM, explained. “And then we have the production abilities after that to turn it into a final physical product.”

“It’s a really cool process, a little different from what people generally think of when they see 3D printing,” said Anderson. “We print several figurines at a single time and what happens is you’re left with a white box of powder (粉末) and you essentially dig the figurines from that box of powder, unlike the material used for desktop 3D printers.”

Could the future of 3D-printed figures be the gateway to more artificial intelligence of one’s self-image? Anderson may say yes. “AI, the idea of being able to catch your awareness in this type of application, and 3D printing are all about personalization,” Anderson said. “So, of course, there’s going to be an amalgam of those two. And I can see a really important connection long term between AI and the sort of the virtual you.”

Most customers are looking to record special moments in their life. They’re making their wedding cake toppers and figures of their kids as they grow up. Gone are the days of photos on your wall, and now are the days of your 3D figure on the shelf. “The whole point behind it is to create something meaningful. We don’t want to use 3D printing and 3D scanning for the sake of the technology. It is all about using the technology to create a product that has meaning for the everyday person,” Anderson said.

According to the great German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, you have the potential (潜能) for greatness inside of you, but like most people, you will probably let it be destroyed by your own laziness.

And just as it’s important not to spend all of our time in comfort, it’s also important not to spend it working too hard. You might argue that progress can be achieved through slavishness (苦干). But does it make any sense to achieve progress if it’s not enjoyable and if it doesn’t lead us to our potential? If we focus on progress simply for the progress itself, we may fail to live the meaningful life we are truly seeking.

The solution to this problem, then, lies in the middle between laziness and slavishness. I call that middle joyful productivity (生产力). It’s about spending your energy in a way that allows you to make meaningful progress each day and avoid the disasters of laziness.

As Adam Smith wrote in The Wealth of Nations, “…by reducing every man’s business to one simple operation, and by making this operation the only employment of his life, necessarily increases the skillfulness of the workman.” In his opinion, when you concentrate all of your attention on one area of expertise (专长), you can become a master in it. And when you become a master in that area, you can create things of value, thus promoting your productivity.

And how do you pick a single area of expertise? It should be something that you are really interested in, because only then will you be able and willing to spend the huge amount of time and effort it takes to become a master in any field.

The end of both laziness and slavishness begins with the discovery of your passions (热爱). Examine the things that caught your interest ever since you were a child before the world told you what you had to care about. The way forward lies within the examination of those early interests.

During the 2025 Spring Festival, Chinese cinemas witnessed an unexpected phenomenon: the animated film Ne Zha 2 broke box office records within days. By February 3rd, its earnings had already surpassed 4 billion yuan, outperforming even Hollywood blockbusters. Guo Fan, director of the sci-fi hit The Wandering Earth 2, praised the film online, calling it “a milestone for Chinese animation.”

The film’s popularity forced cinemas to adapt quickly. 【小题1】. Some theaters even scheduled 100 screenings per day, a number rarely seen before. Tickets sold out within minute online, and long queues formed at ticket counters.【小题2】. For example, limited-edition blind boxes featuring characters like Shen Gongbao sold out instantly, and crowdfunding for collectible figures raised ten times the original goal.

【小题3】 While staying true to ancient myths about gods and demons, the film adds modern themes like “fighting against fate” and friendship. Ne Zha, once a rebellious loner, now teams up with his former rival Ao Bing to face challenges. 【小题4】. Scenes of flaming lotus flowers clashing with water dragons left audiences amazed, proving that Chinese animation can rival global standards.

More than just entertainment, Ne Zha 2 bridges tradition and innovation. 【小题5】 — a message as powerful as its box office success.

A 71-year-old Swedish man “can’t put into words” how thankful he is for the new technology that saved him from sudden cardiac arrest (心脏骤停).

The _________ occurred while he was clearing snow in his _________ . In such situations people _________ have about ten minutes to _________ help, but ambulance response times are often too long to save a patient’s life.

Luckily, an _________ call for emergency service was made, and the man lived in a region that had partnered with an innovative _________ program called EMADE.

EMADE drones (无人机) swiftly delivered an automated external defibrillator (AED), a device to save a person’s life during a sudden cardiac arrest, to the _________ —and the time from the alarm to the safe _________ of the AED was just over three minutes.

_________ , a doctor drove by. “I was on my way to work at the local hospital when I noticed a man __________ in his driveway and I immediately rushed to help.” says Dr. Mustafa Ali. “The man had no pulse (脉搏), so I started __________ CPR while asking another bystander to call the ambulance. Just minutes later. I __________ something flying above me — it was a drone carrying an AED!”

After receiving on-site treatment, the patient was __________ to the hospital upon the arrival of the ambulance.

“This is a truly __________ technology that needs to be established everywhere.” said the patient who now has made a full __________ and returned home. “If it weren’t for the drone. I probably wouldn’t be here.”