Carley Belsterling of Seneca Valley High School demonstrates swimming strokes Wednesday for Rowan Elementary School students during a pool safety program at the water park at North Boundary Park.

CRANBERRY TWP — A bevy of school buses pulled into the township's water park Wednesday morning as hundreds of kids scampered into the facility, but this wasn't a typical field trip for the students.

Instead, they came to learn from lifeguards and other instructors about proper swimming and safety techniques that can be used this summer.

Put together by the Seneca Valley School District, more than 600 students from Rowan Elementary came to the water park in North Boundary Park.

Nearly 900 students from Haine Elementary are expected at the facility today while students in the district's other elementary schools also participated in similar programs in their municipalities.

The students, grouped together by homeroom, sat and listened about the protocols surrounding proper swimming, pool rules and regulations and what to do in case of emergencies.

The students shifted between five stations around the water park, all manned by different pool supervisors or employees.

Mike Manipole, a physical education teacher at Rowan, helped organize the event and said this was the first time the school district had placed such an emphasis on safe swimming. School officials had previously talked about trying to educate students through assemblies, although that idea went out the window when they realized the potential of real-life interactions.

“Most kids are visual learners,” said Lori Rehm, a physical education teacher at Haine Elementary. “If they can see it in person, the lesson is more concrete.”

Pam Quiggle, a parent with a son at Rowan Elementary, assisted with the presentations and agreed.

“Seeing it and hearing about it are totally different,” Quiggle said.

None of the elementary students actually went into the water Wednesday, although each of them was invited back for a night swim on June 20 with their parents. That swim is expected to last from 7 to 9 p.m. But the experience Wednesday wasn't designed to be all about fun. Instead, Manipole said, it was about stressing safety and caution as students embark on their summer vacations.

“They come out here, and they can bond with lifeguards while learning what they need to know,” he said. “Some of the parents, too, can interact with these professionals, and they can take that learning home with their children.”