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KIRKSVILLE, MO -- Not many cannonballs were on display, but a world record was in the works at the Kirksville Aquatic Center.

Nearly 40 participants came out to the aquatic center Thursday morning to take part in the World's Largest Swim Lesson.

The Kirksville Aquatic Center joined 24 countries, five continents and 46 states in the worldwide event.

The 30-minute lesson included everyone from infants to adults, as instructors taught them how to safely enter the water to swimming safely.

This is the second year the aquatic center has chosen to be part of the World's Largest Swim Lesson and besides drawing awareness of learning how to swim, it also gets people in the pool that otherwise may have not been able to.

"There's definitely people here I haven't seen in swim lessons before," said Robin Harden, the Recreation Specialist at the Kirksville Aquatic Center.  "It's great to get them in the door and give them a chance. A lot of the times we hear they can't afford the lessons, so it's giving those people that maybe have restrictions on their income giving them a chance to come out and get lessons and hopefully maybe save their life."

The aquatic center was one of the 500 host pools across the world that participated in the World's Largest Swim Lesson.