FAQ

ISR is the product over 45 years of ongoing development in the area of  aquatic survival instruction for infants and children. The goal of ISR is for your child to become an "aquatic problem solver." Lessons focus on teaching your child to become a productive swimmer or floater in any depth of water, greatly increasing their chance of surviving an aquatic accident, even when fully clothed!   

Six weeks is the average time in which it takes most children to learn  the ISR 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 first and foremost dedicated to  safety. Therefore, we want to provide your child with the best opportunity to become proficient in their survival skills, honoring your child's individual needs. 

The reason for this is multifaceted. First, repetition and consistency are crucial elements of learning for young children, and 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 than 10 minutes. We want to take advantage of the best time for learning. Third, though the pool temperature is maintained at 78-88 degrees, that’s still lower than your child's body temperature. Lessons are a lot of work for your child. As such, they will be losing body heat, and temperature fatigue is an indicator of physical fatigue.

Yes! Children who are developmentally ready to swim (typically around 20-24 months old) will learn to swim.  ISR lessons teach the swim-float-swim sequence to ensure that children are able to get themselves to safety. The difference in our program is that children will learn swimming AND survival skills, making them an adept aquatic problem solver. If your child is not yet ready to learn to swim, absolutely every child will learn how to roll onto their back and float/rest. This lifesaving skill is taught to every child in ISR lessons.

Absolutely. ISR is dedicated 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 a bit of research, you will find that ISR is the safest survival swimming program and also the most effective for teaching infants and young children.

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 their learned self-rescue skills.  Contacting and/or returning to your Instructor in a timely manner is  imperative to maintaining effective habits.