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First Aid Instructor Course | Canadian Red Cross Instructor Training

Canadian Red Cross Training Partner · Instructor Training

First Aid Instructor Course

Train to teach, not just to certify. This Canadian Red Cross program prepares you to lead your own first aid classes—four days plus a skills day, in small groups, so you practise presenting in front of others. Become a certified first aid instructor and join the people who teach these skills for a living.

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Course Components

What the First Aid Instructor Course Covers

The first aid instructor course runs 4 days plus 1 skills day, in three parts. You learn how adults take in new information, how to run a small group, and how to evaluate a student.

Two separate registrations. The two components are booked one at a time.

Canadian Red Cross

Skills Evaluation & Fundamentals of Instruction

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Online portion of the training

Fundamentals of Instruction

8 hours online

Finish this before the classroom days.

Who it is for

Candidates starting the instructor pathway

First aiders who want to teach. The classroom days are where you practise presenting, not where you learn first aid.

In-class training

Fundamentals of Instruction

14.5 hours — 2 days

Learn more
Prerequisites
  • 18 years or older
  • A valid Canadian Red Cross Intermediate/Standard First Aid & CPR/AED Level C certificate
  • A completed skills evaluation
Requirements

100% attendance and participation

Every skill on the checklist performed without coaching

You’ll complete a skills evaluation on your own first—no one coaches you through compression rates during an assessment. The online portion explains how people learn; the classroom days give you practice with detailed lesson plans and course materials.

Register for Fundamentals of Instruction

First aid discipline

Discipline-Specific Classroom Component

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In-class training

Discipline class

14.5 hours — 2 days

Who it is for

Candidates who have finished Fundamentals of Instruction

Booked as its own registration, and it decides which courses your certification lets you run.

What it certifies
The first aid and resuscitation discipline
Learn more
Prerequisites

Fundamentals of Instruction, completed successfully

Booked as its own registration.

Requirements

100% attendance and participation

Successful completion of the discipline class

This part covers the instructor materials themselves: the lesson plans, the equipment, and the standard a student has to achieve. It decides which courses your first aid instructor certification lets you run.

Register for the Discipline-Specific Class

Canadian Red Cross

Teaching Experience & Certification

How to Register
Online portion of the training

Online module

30 to 45 minutes

Who it is for

Candidates with both classroom components behind them

You teach a classroom component while a Teaching Experience supervisor watches. Some candidates need one session, some more.

In-class time

Classroom session

Varies with your competency

Scheduled with a supervisor, not booked as a class date.

Certification
Digital Canadian Red Cross first aid instructor certification, valid 3 years
Learn more
Courses you may teach
  • Basic/Emergency First Aid
  • Intermediate/Standard First Aid
  • Marine Basic First Aid
  • Emergency Child Care First Aid
  • Standard Child Care First Aid
  • CPR training courses
Post-course requirement
The co-teach form, as set out by your Instructor Trainer

Three years is the same term as the student certificates you will hand out, so renew before it lapses.

Follow the full pathway

Registration

How to Register for Instructor Training

Book the two components one at a time: the skills evaluation, then arrange the discipline class. Candidates who book the second one first lose their date.

Your Intermediate/Standard First Aid certificate must be valid on the day you attend.

1 · Skills Evaluation 2 · Discipline-Specific Component

The Route In

First Aid Instructor Pathway

Six steps take instructor candidates from student to certified first aid instructor. The first five belong to the Canadian Red Cross; the sixth is ours.

Start Step 1

Three things first: you are 18 or older, you hold a valid Canadian Red Cross Intermediate/Standard First Aid & CPR/AED Level C certificate, and you have passed a skills evaluation.

The detailed checklists sit on the Instructor Network. You complete every skill without coaching.

Work through the online materials first—what you learn there gets applied over the two classroom days, which is why completing it is mandatory. You attend 100% of the course.

Complete a first aid discipline class, attending 100% of it. This ties your certificate to the courses you are cleared to teach.

Finish the online module, then demonstrate a classroom component with a Teaching Experience supervisor. Some candidates need one session, some more.

You earn a digital first aid instructor certification, valid three years, clearing you to teach the course families listed above. One item remains: the co-teach form your Instructor Trainer sets out.

Once certified you may apply to co-teach with us. You take a section of a class while an experienced instructor supervises, then confirms whether you are ready to work alone. If you do not pass on your first attempt, you will complete additional co-teach sessions until you are ready.

First aid certification is in high demand—WSIB Regulation 1101 requires it of Ontario workplaces—so our certified instructors run 100+ courses every week.

Awards & Recognition

Recognised as a Top 3 Canadian Red Cross Training Partner for 2023, 2024, 2025 consecutively.

National First Aid & CPR Provider 2025 — Canadian Red Cross

2025 · National First Aid & CPR Provider

National Professional Responder Provider 2025 — Canadian Red Cross

2025 · National Professional Responder Provider

Top 3 National Training Provider 2025 — Canadian Red Cross

2025 · Top 3 National Training Provider

Top 3 Provincial Training Provider 2025 — Canadian Red Cross

2025 · Top 3 Provincial Training Provider

National First Aid & CPR Provider 2024 — Canadian Red Cross

2024 · National First Aid & CPR Provider

National Professional Responder Provider 2024 — Canadian Red Cross

2024 · National Professional Responder Provider

Top 3 National Training Provider 2024 — Canadian Red Cross

2024 · Top 3 National Training Provider

Top 3 Provincial Training Provider 2024 — Canadian Red Cross

2024 · Top 3 Provincial Training Provider

National First Aid & CPR Provider 2023 — Canadian Red Cross

2023 · National First Aid & CPR Provider

National Professional Responder Provider 2023 — Canadian Red Cross

2023 · National Professional Responder Provider

Top 3 National Training Provider 2023 — Canadian Red Cross

2023 · Top 3 National Training Provider

Top 3 Provincial Training Provider 2023 — Canadian Red Cross

2023 · Top 3 Provincial Training Provider

Why Coast2Coast

Why Candidates Train as First Aid Instructors With Coast2Coast

An instructor certification is only worth what you can do with it. We set up the placement, and we have the class dates.

Coast2Coast First Aid & Aquatics

Canadian Red Cross Training Partner

Best choice
6/6 Features met
  • Authorized Canadian Red Cross instructor training provider
  • Top 3 Canadian Red Cross Training Partner 2023–2025
  • WSIB-approved training provider
  • Supervised placement with our certified instructors
  • 100+ courses every week across 30+ locations
  • Small-group classes for instructor candidates

Other Providers

Typical first aid training providers

0/6 Features met
  • Not authorized to deliver instructor training
  • Not a ranked Training Partner
  • Limited approved course options
  • No supervised placement after certification
  • Fewer course dates and locations
  • Large lecture-style delivery

Testimonials

The Standard You Will Be Teaching To

What Students Say About Our Instructors

4.9

4.9 Google rating · Over 21K Google Canadian reviews

Google Reviews

  • Manar Al-Shafii Coast2Coast Student Posted on Google

    One of the best instructor make the session fun with knowledge. Thank you so much Ali

  • Effie kd Coast2Coast Student Posted on Google

    Tatiana is a great teacher!

  • Navjot Kaur Coast2Coast Student Posted on Google

    The instructor was knowledgeable, friendly, and explained everything clearly with practical examples.

Read All Reviews on Google →

Verified Reviews from Our Students

Real feedback.

Student Feedback

Participants across our network, in their own words.

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You May Also Like

Other Routes to a First Aid Instructor Certificate

Two other routes exist: one for people who already teach, one for the Professional Responder stream of Instructor Development. Renewing instead? Instructor Recertification is 6 hours for first aid, 7 for Professional Responder.

Canadian Red Cross

First Aid Instructor Transfer Course

Learn More
Duration
2 days
Who it is for
  • Certified instructors from another recognized organization
  • Canadian Red Cross Water Safety Instructors with Intermediate/Standard First Aid
  • Teachers with an Education degree and current Intermediate/Standard First Aid
Certification
Canadian Red Cross certificate, valid 3 years

The short route for people who already teach. Depending on your group you skip one component.

See the Transfer course

Most advanced

Professional Responder Instructor Development Course

Learn More
Duration
4 days + 1 skills day
Who it is for

Certified responders who want to teach the Professional Responder programs

A separate route from the first aid instructor pathway above.

Prerequisites

A valid Canadian Red Cross Basic Life Support, First Responder or Emergency Medical Responder certificate

Emergency Medical Responder alone covers both.

What you may teach
First Responder, Emergency Medical Responder and Basic Life Support classes
Certification
Canadian Red Cross certificate, valid 3 years

The deepest discipline the Canadian Red Cross offers. You train the people who respond for a living.

See the Professional Responder course

Inside the Classroom

  • Instructor candidates on a Coast2Coast first aid instructor class in North York
  • A first aid instructor candidate practising a teaching demonstration
  • First aid instructor training group at the Coast2Coast North York facility
  • Chest compressions on an adult manikin, a skill instructor candidates must demonstrate unaided
  • Infant choking relief on a training manikin, part of the Level C skills checklist
  • Splinting a limb injury during Intermediate/Standard First Aid training

Before You Apply

What an Instructor Candidate Has to Bring

The Canadian Red Cross sets the bar, and it is about more than skills. Instructor candidates demonstrate any required first aid or resuscitation skill on request — hands-on skills testing with automated external defibrillator included.

Candidates pursue first aid instruction for a career change, a second income, or a way to empower the people around them — and you work from Canadian Red Cross instructor materials throughout.

  • 18+Minimum age
  • 4+1Days of training
  • 3 yrsCertificate term
  • 100%Attendance required
How to become a first aid instructor →

  • You represent the Red Cross

    Professional conduct, a positive attitude, and your own approach to instructing, to the standard of excellence the Red Cross sets.

  • You inspire a room

    Groups differ. You create the conditions where someone who turned up under protest will try.

  • You understand how people learn

    Communicating to a small group, giving feedback and taking it, including every participant.

  • You can evaluate fairly

    Evaluating participants to Canadian Red Cross standards — what makes a certificate mean something.

Common Questions

First Aid Instructor Course Questions, Answered

How do I become a certified first aid instructor?

You complete the six-step Canadian Red Cross instructor training pathway, starting with a skills evaluation. Two classroom components, a Teaching Experience assessment and certification follow. The sixth step is a supervised co-teach with our certified instructors. The full pathway is above.

What do I need before I can start the first aid instructor course?

You must be 18 or older and hold a valid Canadian Red Cross Intermediate/Standard First Aid certificate. You also pass a skills evaluation, completing every item on the detailed Instructor Network checklists without coaching. If it has lapsed, renew it first.

My certificate says Standard First Aid. Is that the same as Intermediate First Aid?

Yes — Intermediate First Aid and Standard First Aid are the same course under two names. The Canadian Red Cross changed the wording, so older certificates read Standard and newer ones read Intermediate. Either meets the prerequisite if it is Level C and unexpired — see the first aid courses page.

How long is the first aid instructor course?

Four days plus one skills day. That is 8 hours online and 14.5 hours in class for the first component, another 14.5 hours for the discipline component, and 30 to 45 minutes online for Teaching Experience.

Which classes can I teach once I am certified?

Your instructor certificate covers six course families. Basic/Emergency First Aid, Intermediate/Standard First Aid, Marine Basic First Aid, Emergency Child Care First Aid, Standard Child Care First Aid and CPR courses. First Responder and Emergency Medical Responder need the Professional Responder discipline instead.

How long does a first aid instructor certification last?

Three years, the same term as the student certificates you will issue. Keeping it current is the instructor’s own responsibility, and nobody may instruct on an expired card. Instructor Recertification is 6 hours for first aid, 7 for Professional Responder.

I trained as an instructor with another organization. Do I start over?

No — the two-day Instructor Transfer course exists for that. It covers instructors from another recognized organization, Canadian Red Cross Water Safety Instructors, and teachers with an Education degree. See the Transfer course for what each group needs.

Start teaching first aid

Register for the skills evaluation to begin, or call us if you are unsure your prerequisite qualifies. Teaching is how you achieve something past your own certificate.

Register for Instructor Training Call 1-866-291-9121

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