NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – Wednesday is the last day of classes for New York City public school kids.

It’s a perfect day to kick off summer pool season.

Fifty three pools open Thursday, and the season started with a splash.

New York City Parks Commissioner Mitchell Silver jumped in with the kids to kick things off. He swam with part of New York City’s swim team at Wagner Pool in East Harlem.

Also launching Wednesday are free swim lessons offered at city pools for kids as young as a year and a half up to 17, and there’s still room in the classes.

“Oh my God, refreshing. Oh my God, I’ve been waiting for this, it was hot. Oh my God, I liked the part where we all jumped in, we were all excited,” said 12-year-old Amy Loicota.

“The best thing about swimming is that it’s actually really fun and you get to try a lot of new stuff, especially you get to play around with the strokes and everything,” said 11-year-old Tanna Gooden.

RELATED: Making Sure Children Know Proper Swim Safety

Pools open Thursday. They’ll be open from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. and 4 p.m-7 p.m.

You can enjoy the pools through Sunday, Sept. 8.

To find a pool near you, click here.