What to Expect

Discover our personalized approach to teaching infants and young children water survival skills.

What to Expect

From Sign-Up to Skills: Our Process

Reserving Your Lesson Slot & Registration

To start, parents reserve a lesson time slot with us to secure their preferred time.

Next, new students must register with Infant Swimming Resource (ISR). This one-time registration includes a health screening reviewed by ISR’s Registration Evaluation Team to ensure lessons are safe and appropriate for your child. After registration, you’ll receive all the details you need to prepare for the first lesson, including schedules, pool location, and tips to help your child succeed.

Daily Lesson Schedule

Lessons are 10 minutes per day, 5 days per week (Monday–Friday). Short, consistent lessons are highly effective and allow children to focus and retain skills. Regular attendance is essential to progress.

Typical Timelines

Initial Session: Most children complete the core ISR program in about 6 weeks, depending on age and individual progress.

  • Age 6–14 months: Your baby learns to turn onto their back to breathe, rest, and float independently.

  • Age 15 months-2 years: Your child swims a short distance, then rolls to their back to rest and breathe.

  • 2 years+: Your child swims underwater, floats to breathe and rest, then continues swimming. "Swim-Float-Swim."

  • Refreshers: Recommended every 6–12 months to reinforce and adjust skills as your child grows.

Parent Roles

  • Observation: Parents stay poolside so children can focus fully on the instructor.

  • Daily BUDS Check: At the start of each lesson, I’ll ask about your child’s sleep, appetite, energy, and bathroom output (BUDS) to ensure lessons are safe and responsive.

  • Encouragement: Celebrate your child’s progress — every milestone matters!

Then What?

Maintenance Lessons are the most common follow-up option. Typically biweekly or monthly to help reinforce existing skills, fine-tune technique, and adjust to growth or developmental changes.

Refresher Lessons are recommended every 6 months, and consist of daily lessons for 1–3 weeks. These are especially helpful for children who were unable to attend regular maintenance or who need a more focused review.

Parents work with the instructor to determine the right Maintenance + Refresher schedule for their child.

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FAQs
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.
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 don’t parents participate in the water during the lessons?
We do not want the baby to initially associate the water with the love, attention, and affection of the parent while in the water. Also, it takes incredible concentration and objectivity to teach the baby how to respond to an aquatic emergency and our experience shows that parents often find it too difficult to be objective to be effective teachers with their own children in the water. We gladly invite parents to join us in the pool once their child has independent skills to practice at home.
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.
Download ISR's Family Aquatic Safety List to help protect your family from the hazards of an aquatic environment
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