| Our Learn-to-Skate program at the International Ice Centre
is designed around the U.S. Figure Skating Basic Skills program.
It is an entry-level program for the youngest and least experienced
skaters. The IIC
Basic Skills program is intended for children as young as
3-years of age and older beginners up to around 13-years old.
There are three tiers in this program:
Snow Plow Sam is intended for children with no ice skating
experience and are between 3- to 5-years old. Children learn
fundamental skills including gaining confidence; moving independently;
getting up after a fall; marching; simple stride and glide skills
and of course, stopping.
There are three Snow Plow Levels to take your student through
the fundamental skills at his or her pace. At IIC the emphasis
is on having fun in a nurturing environment.
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Basic Skills sessions are offered in eight levels. These sessions
are intended for students in an age range from 6 to 13-years
old. Children in this age range may enter this program with
no experience at all, or more likely will have gone through
Snow Plow Sam sessions. Each of the eight levels has specific
skill sets that must be obtained in order to move on to the
next level.
Basic Skill levels 1 through 4 teach the elements
of skating that are needed for both figure skating and hockey.
Levels 5 through 8 are more focused on the skills needed
for figure skating. Hockey skating instruction and clinics are
also available at IIC.
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Free Style sessions are available
to students who have passed the requirements of Basic Level
8. Free style is the type of skating that has become so familiar
to us all from televised competitions. Free style consists of
jumps, spins, and other maneuvers all connected by choreographed
footwork and skated to music.
Free style sessions can often lead to taking private lessons
with IIC instructors and progressing to increased ice time and
practice through IIC’s schedule of Contract Ice times.
International Ice Centre offers the most extensive schedule
of Contract Ice in the Chicagoland area. IIC also has the distinction
of being one of the few facilities in the Midwest to offer separate
rinks for Dance and Moves in the Field and jumping. Mixed use
practice times are often counter-productive and sometimes dangerous.
IIC’s discipline-specific facilities will help you get
more out of your practice schedule.
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