ISR’s unique results are achieved through fully ​customized, safe and effective, one-on-one lessons with ​only your child and the Instructor in the water. What ​your child will learn, and the way he or she will learn it, ​is what makes ISR so different from traditional ​swimming lessons. Always putting safety first, ISR ​emphasizes competence, which leads to confidence, ​and provides the foundation for a lifetime of enjoyment ​in and around the water.

Drowning is the number one cause of accidental death for children ​under the age of 4 in the United States. Infant Swimming Resource, ​with over 50 years of research and development in drowning ​prevention and aquatic survival instruction, is striving to change this ​statistic.

Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) can teach your little one to become ​an aquatic problem solver and an effective swimmer or floater in any ​depth of water. Consider that most infants and toddlers love the ​water, and the situation begs the question - would your child know ​what to do if they found themselves in the water alone?

Empower your child by enrolling them in ISR’s Self-Rescue program.

Rollback to float

(Generally 6-18 months old) All students, even ​those as young as 6 months old, learn the ​fundamental ISR skill of rolling onto their backs ​to float, rest, and breathe. Infants and toddlers ​who are not yet walking well will learn to ​maintain this position until help can reach them, ​and it's just as important for our older students ​as they incorporate more swimming skills.

Swim-Float-Swim

(Generally 1.5-6 years old) As toddlers and ​young children gain more physical skills on ​land, they are ready to learn more skills in the ​water as well. ISR teaches children to swim a ​short distance, rotate onto their back to a ​floating position, and then turn over to ​continue the sequence of swimming and ​floating until they can reach safety at the ​steps, side of the pool, or shoreline.

Will my child actually learn how to 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 can you teach babies and young children to hold their breath and to swim?

• Breath-holding skills are taught in the first lesson. We shape breath control using highly effective positive ​reinforcement techniques. We continue to reinforce these breath-holding techniques throughout every lesson.

ISR instructors teach infants to swim by honoring each child's individual strengths and experiences. They understand ​the fundamentals of the behavioral sciences, child development and of sensorimotor learning as it relates to the ​acquisition of aquatic survival skills; they use this education to guide each child through the sequence of learning to ​swim and float.

Can you make my child "drown-proof"?"

• No swimming program should ever profess that it is able to drown-proof a child. The best way to keep children ​safe around the water is to include several layers of protection. Survival swimming lessons have helped many ​children save their own lives when they "got out of sight for just a second". However, lessons should never ​replace adult supervision, pool fences and alarms, and CPR training.

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.

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 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 is the AAP's position on swimming lessons for young children?

• In May of 2010, the AAP has now changed it's policy regarding the age at which children may start swimming ​lessons, based on research stating that swim lessons may actually provide reduction in drowning risk of children ​ages 1- to 4-years-old. That study, “Association Between Swimming Lessons and Childhood Drowning” published ​in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, March, 2009, by Brenner et. al. was the first study to probe ​the relationship between drowning reduction and swimming skills. That study concluded that, “Participation in ​formal swimming lessons was associated with an 88% reduction in the risk of drowning in the 1- to 4-year-old ​children…” The AAP encourages parent's to consider that starting water-survival skills training at an early age ​must be individualized, based on the child's frequency of exposure to water, emotional maturity, physical ​limitations and health concerns related to swimming pools.