Levels

There are five badge levels taught in our Learn to Skate programs.  

STAGE 1: Fall down & get up, Forward skating, 2-foot glides, Beginning backwards skating

STAGE 2: Foward 1-foot glide, push/glide sequence, Forward stop, Backwards glides

STAGE 3: Forward slalom, Beginning crosscuts, Backward skating, 2-foot turns

STAGE 4: Forward crosscuts, backward slalom, Backward stop, 1-foot turns

STAGE 5: Power crosscuts in all directions, Power skating in all directions

CanSkate Report Card.pdf

Ages

3 to 4 years - Parent & Tot (with parent)

3 to 5 years - PreSchool (without parent)

6 to 10 years - CanSkate

10 to 18 years - TeenSkate

18 and over - AdultSkate

Program Descriptions

Parent & Tot: A 30 minute program intended to provide exposure to skating for children ages 3 and 4 who have never been on the ice before.  It provides an opportunity for skaters to be in the presence and comfort of their parents, or an adult over the age of 18, while experiencing the joys and challenges of balance and control.   We provide music, toys, teaching aids and coach guidance to promote a safe and enjoyable experience for both you and your child.  Adults accompanying the children need to be proficient skaters.  All participants must provide their own skates and hockey helmets.

PreSchool: A 30 minute program for young skaters ages 3 to 5. No previous skating experience is required.  We provide a small group environment where children are encouraged to stand on their own and balance and control at their own pace.  Children are grouped by ability and skaters that are able to stand and move on their own begin working on the CanSkate badges.  All participants must provide their own skates and hockey helmets with face masks.  Snowpants or waterproof pants are recommended as skaters start by sitting on the ice.

PrePower: A 30 min program for young hockey players aged 3 to 5.  Skaters must be able to stand up and move forward on their own.  Using power skating-specific skills and drills, skaters learn balance, forward and backward skating, stopping, turning and agility skills.  Lessons are taught with hockey gloves and sticks, but no pucks.

CanSkate: A 50 minute program for skaters ages 6 to 10 where the five STAGE badge levels are taught.  We keep track of your childs progression through the badges and group them accordingly.  Skaters new to us are grouped on the first day.  The session starts with a warm up with everybody, then station rotations with their group where they learn and practice new skills, and finally a coach led group cool down. All participants must provide their own skates and hockey helmets

Five year olds that are new to skating are usually happier in the PreSchool Program.  Ten year olds that are new to skating are usually more comfortable in the TeenSkate Program.

Intro to Synchro: Taught by our synchro coaches, this program will teach basic synchro elements and is intended for younger skaters not yet ready to skate on one of our teams.  Skaters must have passed stage 3 of CanSkate and be registered for at least 1 Canskate session in addition to this session. See Learn to Skate registration page for sign up information

TeenSkate: TeenSkate runs like a CanSkate session but is a more comfortable environment for older beginners and teens working the five Stage badges.  See CanSkate for full description. All participants must provide their own skates and hockey helmets.

AdultSkate: AdultSkate is a 50 minute learn to skate program for adults.  It is taught in group format where skaters are group according to their ability.  Adults will work on skating skills that will enable them to enjoy the sport.