KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Summertime is quickly approaching and so are the warmer temperatures, pool parties and cookouts that come with it.
Knoxville and Knox County are offering families some chances to spend summer in the sun with safe and educational activities for kids. For example, Knox County is offering summer youth sports camps.
Registration for the camps is open and includes several kinds of activities like softball, football and baseball. There are also camps for aspiring naturalists and artists.
Children aren't the only ones who can find fun summertime activities through the Knox County Parks and Recreation Department either. They're also organizing men's and co-ed softball teams that meet starting May 22 and running until June 11. Anyone interested in signing up for a team, or signing their child up, can do so online.
Knoxville's Parks and Recreation Aquatics team is also offering lessons to teach children how to swim. The program was created with the American Red Cross and combines swim instruction with drowning prevention and water safety.
On the first day of lessons, children are tested and placed in groups according to their skill level. Classes are offered Monday through Thursday evenings for two consecutive weeks. They are held at the Inskip Swimming Pool, and it costs $60 to participate in the summer lessons.
Anyone interested in participating can call 865-687-9919. There are lessons scheduled for June 5 through June 15, June 19 through June 29, and July 10 through July 20.
Safety City is also opening over the weekend, with a kickoff event on June 3. It gives kids a chance to bring their bikes and ride through a miniature version of Knoxville, passing by small versions of the Sunsphere, Neyland Stadium and other iconic buildings while also learning about road safety and fire safety.
It will be open Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays over the summer, in June and July. It is located at 165 S. Concord St.