ISR Infant Self Rescue Vs Traditional Swim Lessons

When the weather becomes warmer, people are naturally attracted to the water, which makes summer the most popular time to sign children up for swim lessons.

You want your children to have fun enjoying the cool water, but you’re also concerned about their safety. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), drowning ranks fifth among unintentional injury deaths for Americans. They also found that, between the years of 2005-2014, about ten drowning deaths occurred each day. Of those, two out of the 10 were children under the age of 14. Drownings are a serious concern for parents.

Luckily, research shows that formal swimming lessons result in an 88% risk reduction.

Participating in adult, child and toddler swim lessons can help protect your family from unintentional injury. But, which type of swimming lessons is the best choice? Let’s explore the differences between ISR and traditional swim lessons below

What are ISR Swimming Lessons?

ISR is short for Infant Swimming Resource, which promotes infant “self-rescue” swimming skills. The one-on-one lessons emphasize teaching infants and toddlers how to basically survive in the water until someone comes to the rescue.

Depending on the child’s age, this may involve swimming to safety or simply rolling onto their backs and floating to get air. The programs are designed to “drown-proof” children, but many experts doubt these claims.

What’s more, there is evidence suggesting that the tactics used in ISR may create traumatic associations. As a result, older children may develop negative thoughts or fears about the water or swimming.

In addition, ISR can require a big time and financial commitment, such as a four to six-week program with five, short, 10-minute lessons per week.

What Are Traditional Swimming Lessons?

Traditional swim lessons— such as those given at Sunsational Swim School — are safe, effective and much more compassionate than ISR.

Lessons are delivered privately, typically in an environment where the child feels comfortable, such as in the child’s home or in a community pool. A variety of methods are used to ensure skill development, including educational games, repetition and even songs. Swim lessons are given in 30-minute sessions, providing ample time for the instructor and the child to build a rapport with one another.

With Sunsational Swim School, the children and parents set the pace, so they can comfortably adjust to the water in a way that feels natural— no shock value or aggression is used. Sunsational Swim School also works with your unique goals and schedule.

Benefits of Traditional Swimming Lessons

Are you still not convinced that Sunsational Swim School is the best choice for your private swimming lessons? Here are just a few of the advantages of choosing our program:

• Flexible and personalized goals and scheduling.
• Private lessons provided in your child’s natural environment (i.e. the pool in which they will most likely be swimming).
• Safe, effective, fun tactics shown to help your child develop swimming skills— no trauma-inducing tactics here!
• Compassionate, slower paced lessons in which the child learns at the rate that best suits them.
• Learn to Swim Guarantee that children ages 3 and older will complete the Sunsational Safety Sequence by lesson #12.
• 30-minute to 60-minute lessons that allow the instructor and child to form a positive relationship.
• Peace of mind that your child will feel positive and confident about spending time in the water.

Traditional swimming lessons provided by Sunsational Swim School are the obvious best choice when compared to potentially damaging ISR lessons.

Significantly lower your children’s risk of drowning AND prevent your child from developing lifelong, negative associations with swimming. Contact us today to learn how to get signed up.