What to Expect

What your child will learn:

Expectations

What your child will learn:

Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) is the safest and ONLY provider of comprehensive swimming and aquatic self-rescue™ instruction. Our method of clinically researched instruction emphasizes developmentally-appropriate skills training to ensure that your child is learning self-rescue skills and developing the competence required to enjoy the water.

Integrated into the skills training of infants and young children is the ISR Parent Education program. This program seeks to enable the parents and caretakers to understand drowning prevention methods and thereby safeguard their child’s aquatic environment. ISR lessons give children the competence and confidence to be aquatic problem solvers.

Children as young as 6 months can participate in ISR lessons. ISR lessons are intensive lessons held 5 days per week for an average of 4-6 weeks.

Infants (6 months- 12 months old) will learn to hold their breath underwater, roll onto their back and float unassisted.

Children (1 year- 6 years old) will learn the following sequence: how to hold their breath underwater; swim with their head down and eyes open; roll onto their back to float, rest, and breathe; and roll back over to resume swimming until they reach the side of the pool and can crawl out or be rescued by an adult.

Since statistics show that 83% of all children who drown are fully clothed at the time, during the final week of lessons, while under the watchful eye of an instructor, each of our students have the opportunity to practice their self-rescue skills in both their summer/fall and winter clothes.

FAQs

Why does it take an average of 6 weeks for my child to learn this?

The 6-week average is an estimate that is based on the average time in which it takes most children to learn these survival skills. Every child is unique and ISR’s Self- Rescue program is specifically designed based on your child’s individual strengths and needs. It is important to realize that this is an average which means that some children will actually finish more quickly while others will need more practice. ISR is dedicated to safety and, therefore, we want to provide your child with the time and best opportunity to become proficient in his/her survival skills. We will always honor your child’s needs.

Why are lessons 5 days per week and for only 10 minutes?

The reason for this is multifaceted. First, repetition and consistency are crucial elements of learning for young children. Research shows that short, more frequent lessons result in higher retention. Second, most children have fairly short attention spans and will not be able to focus on the task for longer and we want to take advantage of the best time for learning. A third reason is that, though the pool temperature is maintained at 78-88 degrees, the temperature is still lower than your child's body temperature. Lessons are work and therefore will also be losing body heat. Instructors check students regularly for temperature fatigue since this is an indicator of physical fatigue.

I hear you say your priority is survival skills. Will my child learn to actually swim?

Yes. At ISR, we believe that part of survival for a child who can walk is swimming. Children learn the swim-float-swim sequence so that they could get themselves to safety. The difference in our program is that they will learn swimming AND survival skills and how to be an aquatic problem solver.

How do the kids react during the first few lessons?

Children often fuss during the first few lessons because they are in a new environment and around new people. As your child becomes more confident in his/her ability in the water, the fussing will decrease. It is not unlike the first time you tried a new exercise class or were asked to perform a task at work that you’d never done before: the first time you try a new task it is always challenging, until you get the hang of it. It is the same for your young child. Your child is learning to perform a skill that he/she’s never done before.

Download ISR's Family Aquatic Safety List to help protect your family from the hazards of an aquatic environment

Download Safety List

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