WHAT IS ISR AND HOW IS IT DIFFERENT FROM OTHER SWIMMING PROGRAMS?

ISR is the product over 45 years of ongoing development in the area of aquatic survival instruction for infants and children. ISR's primary focus is to teach you child to become a productive swimmer, or floater in any depth of water. The goal of ISR is that your child becomes an "aquatic problem solver." ISR will greatly increase your child's chance of surviving an aquatic accident, even when fully clothed!

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.

IS IT OK TO USE FLOATIES, LIKE PUDDLE JUMPERS OR FLOATATION SWIM SUITS UNTIL SHE IS READY TO LEARN TO SWIM? HOW ABOUT A LIFE-JACKET?
Flotation devices are the most dangerous thing to put on a toddler in the water for a number of reasons. 1. It gives the child a false sense of security. Children this age are sponges, and every interaction is a learning experience. If a child learns he can be independent in the water "even once" with floaties, the child has a false sense of what being alone in the water is really like. 2. It gives parents and caretakers a false sense of security. It is a lot easier to look away, even for a moment, if you believe your child is safe. 3. It teaches children to assume a drowning posture in the water. Drowning does not look like what we see in the movies. In real life, drowning humans assume a vertical position in the water with either their mouth at water level or just below the surface. Their arms and legs move underwater as if trying to climb a ladder. There is no screaming. There is no splashing. Just silence as they struggle to breathe. Floatation devices that artificially hold children in vertical positions and reinforce this ladder climbing "swimming" motion is a recipe for disaster. Properly fitting and tested life jackets - not Puddle Jumpers or water wings - must be worn on a boat and around any source of open water when there is the potential for an accidental submersion. Even in these cases, life jackets are not a substitute for constant adult supervision or the ability to self-rescue.

WILL MY CHILD NEED ADDITIONAL LESSONS?

Based on our research, we know that refresher lessons are important because children change so much both cognitively and physically during the first 4-5 years of life. It is important that their water survival skills grow with their bodies. Frequency depends on the child's age, growth rate, skill level and confidence level. The goal of refresher lessons is to help your child adjust his/her new body size and weight to his/her existing skill level. Your instructor will work with your child to help fine-tune his or her aquatic experience to assist with building efficiency, which will result in self-confidence. This is especially important if your child has not been able to practice any appropriate aquatic skill between seasons.

WHAT IS THE RETENTION RATE WITH ISR LESSONS?

ISR claims a retention rate of 94-100% up to one year following lessons. Having said this, children will explore and may pick up bad habits watching other children or with interference like floating in a bathtub or playing on the steps. As your child goes through lessons, you will begin to understand, through communication with your Instructor, what activities may interfere with his/her learned Self-Rescue skills. Contacting and/or returning to your instructor in a timely manner is imperative to maintaining effective habits.

WHY DO YOU HAVE THE CHILDREN SWIM IN CLOTHES?

Because 86% of children, who fall in the water, do so fully clothed, we want our students to have experience with such a situation. If a child has experienced the sensations of being in the water in clothing prior to an emergency situation, he/she is less likely to experience panic and be able to focus on the task at hand. If you have ever jumped in the water with clothes on, then you know that there is a significant difference in weight and feel with clothes as opposed to a bathing suit.

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 loosing body heat. Instructors check students regularly for temperature fatigue since this is an indicator of physical fatigue.

IF MORE FREQUENT BUT SHORTER LESSONS ARE BETTER, THEN WHY DON'T YOU TEACH 7 DAYS/WEEK?

Everyone needs a little break from learning to process the information and in this case to give muscles a chance to recover. In addition, you need to be able to spend time with your family, as does your instructor. Weekends are family time. Periodically, if weather or other issues have caused lessons to be cancelled for numerous days, your instructor may choose to offer make up lessons on a weekend. This is strictly up to the instructor and based on the availability of parents.

WHY DOES IT TAKE 4-6 WEEKS FOR MY CHILD TO LEARN THIS?

The 4-6 weeks 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.

DO YOU HAVE CHILDREN THAT JUST CAN'T LEARN THE SKILLS?

No. Every child can learn. It is my job to find the best way to communicate the information so that it makes sense to the child. I set your child up to be successful every time. I start where they are.

WHY SHOULD PARENTS ENROLL THEIR CHILDREN IN ISR LESSONS?

ISR parents are intelligent and enroll their children because they understand their children's abilities and want to give them every opportunity to learn. They also feel it is important to teach their children how to help themselves should they find themselves alone in the water. Research shows that there are better times to learn certain things. Swimming is best learned early in life. (Newsweek and Drowning Statistics)

WHAT OTHER BENEFITS DO THE ISR LESSON EXPERIENCE PROVIDE STUDENTS?

Every child is unique. However, many parents report that once their young children have mastered learning to swim, the resulting confidence in their abilities engenders a positive self-concept that is often demonstrated in other aspects of their personalities. There are also obvious health and other psychological gains.

ARE SWIMMING LESSONS FOR INFANTS AND YOUNG CHILDREN SAFE?

YES! ISR is dedicated to safety and maintaining numerous safety protocols to promote safe lessons. Your child's health and well-being are our highest priority and are closely monitored on a daily basis. In addition, your child's medical and developmental history is a mandatory part of the ISR national registration process, all of which is held strictly confidential. All ISR instructors undergo an intensive and rigorous training that far exceeds any other training program of this kind. Each ISR instructor is also required to attend a yearly re-certification symposium that includes quality control as well as continuing education. Your education in the area of aquatic safety for your entire family is an integral part of your child's lessons. You will receive access to the "Parent Resource Guide", written by Dr. Harvey Barnett and JoAnn Barnett, which will inform you of every aspect of swimming for infants and children. With research, you will find that ISR is the safest survival swimming program but also the most effective for teaching infants and young children.

WHAT IF MY CHILD CRIES DURING HIS OR HER LESSON?

Crying is a form of communication for children as they grow. They cry when they are hungry, bored, tired, etc. When introduced to a new person and a new experience, many children cry. This is not unusual for a child in ISR lessons. Your child will be looking to you to develop his or her attitude toward swimming and ISR lessons. Students whose parents or care takers projects positive attitudes and offer verbal praises will typically stop crying within 3 or 4 lessons or as their skill level progresses. Crying will not bother the ISR instructor or interfere with your child's ability to learn.

 IF MY CHILD CRIES, WILL THEY LEARN TO HATE/FEAR THE WATER?

There is an important difference between being afraid and being apprehensive in an unfamiliar environment. ISR is not like traditional swim lessons; it is a drowning prevention program that teaches survival swimming. Your child may not happily skip to his or her ISR lessons each day at first, but that's okay. Sometimes as a parent, you make sure your child does things for his or her SAFETY, like receiving vaccinations and wearing a seat belt, because you know they are important. The same can be said for ISR.  FUN can be defined as when SKILL meets CHALLENGE. Once competent in their skills, most ISR students cannot be dragged away from the pool!! They are having entirely too much FUN.  When you learn about ISR, you know this is the most important level of protection you can give your child to prevent drowning. If fences, supervision, and alarms fail, your child's skill is an additional measure of protection.

**Please feel free to contact me directly if your question is not answered here