The Level 2 Essentials of Kayak Touring instructor certification program equips kayakers with the teaching, assessing, and leadership skills to provide safe and effective learning experiences in sheltered water.  Over the course of four days of learning and practical application, your instructor trainer and assisting instructors will support paddlers as they make their initial entry into the ACA Coastal Kayaking instructor scheme.

Instructor Candidates will focus on the instructing aspect of developing entry-level kayaking skills for those who wish to learn to kayak in Level 2 conditions.

Big Takeaways :

• Level 2 Instructors can plan courses, deliver structured learning sessions, and can recognize and correct common errors.

• Successful candidates will lead and teach in sheltered water environments with minimal learning distractions.

• As with all levels of coastal kayaking instructor training, there is a focus also on planning and delivering skills courses and skill assessments, as well as the role and responsibilities of an ACA Instructor.

Benefits After Certification:

• Lead official skills courses and skills assessments

• Access to ACA instructor resources

• Equipment pro deals from supporting outdoor recreation companies

• Post your courses to the ACA's events calendar

• ACA instructor listing and profile page

• Access to ACA insurance for your courses at low costs

• Support from the Safety Education and Instruction Council (SEIC)

• Professional credibility and recognition

• Increased personal paddling and leadership skills

Anthony Sousa is your lead trainer for this Instructor Certification Workshop. Anthony is an ACA Level 5 advanced open water coastal kayak instructor, coastal leader trainer, and a candidate for guide trainer and instructor trainer. You can read more about his background and experience on his homepage here: Kayak ANT.

Anthony will be joined by ACA Instructor Trainer Educator Jeff Atkins of Wave Paddler, based in Charleston, S.C. This workshop is part of Anthony's final check-off as an ACA kayak instructor trainer. Jeff is an amazing paddlesports coach who will be there to support the process and experience, as well as learning value for everyone involved.

Additional "guest coaches" from the local area may be featured to support the workshop experience and risk management, as well as to keep candidate-to-trainer ratios low for a positive learning environment.

As this is the entry point into the ACA’s instructor scheme, the course is appropriate for paddlers who may not have prior experience as an outdoor educator, though participants will have had previous paddling experience and are prepared to take the next step toward instructing others.

Level 2: Essentials of Kayak Touring Instructor Candidates shall meet the standard for the skills and competencies outlined in the Level 2: Essential of Kayak Touring Skill Assessment before starting instructor development. By the time of evaluation, they are expected to exceed the Level 2 skills and technical knowledge, including the “developing skills,” as identified in the assessment outline.

This is a combined American Canoe Association (ACA) instructor development workshop (IDW) and instructor certification exam (ICE). Participants can choose any of the following:

• Full instructor certification workshop (ICW), four days including both instructor development and certification exam.

• Instructor development training portion only, for those who want to challenge the exam later.

• Instructor exam portion only, for those with prior IDW credit.

• One-day instructor update for current instructors maintaining their certificate.

• Join just for the kayak skills training as a “practice student” for our instructor candidates to work with.

Pick the package that's right for you at checkout or contact us if you're unsure.

The Tarpon Springs area offers lots of options for us to work in, from fresh water lakes to tidal rivers and intracoastal waters.

The workshop and instructor exam will be conducted in a location that offers calm and protected waters with constant access to landing areas, within 0.5 nautical miles of shore. Conditions during the course shall be:

• Winds less than 10 knots

• Waves less than 1 foot (0.3 meters)

• Shore break less than 1 foot (0.3 meters)

• Current less than 1 knot

Not all of the above conditions need be present simultaneously. Candidate performance in at least three of the four must be observed during the workshop.

Please note: our final paddling venues and launch locations will be finalized closer to the workshop dates, based on our assessment of weather and sea conditions, risks and opportunities. We will paddle in multiple locations throughout the workshop.

Tarpon Springs, Florida, is in the northern gulf coast area of the Greater Tampa Bay/St.Petersburg metro area. It provides numerous paddling venue learning locations as well as plenty of options for lodging, dining, or extending your workshop experience.

• Air Travel: Tarpon Springs is about a 45-minute drive from Tampa International Airport (TPA) and about 30 minutes from the smaller St Pete/Clearwater Airport (PIE).

• Tarpon Springs Visitors Guide

• All About Tarpon Springs

• Visit St Pete/Clearwater Guide

• HipCamp camping options in the area

• Tampa Bay Sea Kayakers - our local paddling club, a good start for kayaking in the area before or after your workshop

Feel free to contact us for other suggestions on lodging, dining or visiting the region.

Explore these resource locations for more about the instructor certification pathway.

• Kayak ANT's Certification Courses Page

• ACA’s Become an Instructor page

• ACA Paddlesports Instructor Manual

• ACA instructor resources page

• Essential Eligibility Criteria

• L2 Instructor Criteria

• Kayak Skills Assessments

As a thank you for your service to our military members and veterans, first responders and teachers, we are happy to offer a 5% discount.

We also offer discounted pricing for our colleagues at Outward Bound and NOLS, as well as our paddling partners at Florida Paddling Trails Association and Tampa Bay Sea Kayakers.

Please email us at explore@kayakant.com to receive a code for checkout.

We'll accomplish some of the required curriculum with a self-paced homework assignment. We use this to cover some key areas about the American Canoe Association, knowledge based areas, online systems for instructors, and more. It helps us save time for more on-water practical experiences during the course.

Participants must have an ACA L2 Essentials of Kayak Touring skills assessment (or known comparable skills) to participate in the workshop as an instructor candidate. You can obtain skills training and skills assessment from any Level 2 or higher kayak instructor. You can work with us in skills sessions before the workshop, or look for an instructor near you using ACA's instructor listing page.

We will run an L2 Essentials of Kayak Touring skills assessment on April 20, the day before the workshop begins, to support participants who haven't been able to connect with an instructor earlier. This is an optional add-on at check-out.

• You can review skills assessment criteria here.

• If you already have a skills assessment, you can still join our skills assessment day at a lower price as a tune-up and opportunity for feedback.

• We offer skills tune-up days on both April 19 and 20.

Each day of the instructor development portion of the workshop will feature a blend of on-shore and on-water activities. On-shore activities will include classes, candidate presentations, debriefs of on-water activities and other discussions. On-water portions will focus on practical elements of coaching and instructing in areas like strokes and maneuvers, rescues and towing, and group management.

On the final days, the practical experiences of previous days will finalize with on-water experiences aimed to evaluate the candidate’s readiness for instructor certification. The course is flexible however, and some evaluation elements can be conducted earlier and some practical elements may be reserved for this day, based on conditions, schedules and other variables. Please review the instructor criteria here.

On one of the evenings during the workshop, we'll plan to meet at a local restaurant or gathering spot for our "coaches social." It's an opportunity to talk kayaking and coaching in a relaxed setting off the water.

• We'll finalize evening plans together during the workshop.

• Meals and beverages are at individual expense and not included with workshop registration.

You'll receive feedback throughout your workshop, from trainers, yourself and peers. Each candidate will also leave the workshop with an in-person evaluation.

After the workshop:

• You will receive a formal written evaluation in the ACA's Course Management System.

• You'll complete a course evaluation, providing feedback to your trainers.

• Passing candidates will be awarded their certificate credentials shortly after the course is submitted to the ACA's SEIC.

• If you have any below standard deficiency areas, we will work with you collaboratively to develop an action plan to resolve those areas and complete certification. This process is called continuation.