Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why do I have to come 10 minutes a day, 5 days a week for 4 – 6 weeks?
ISR lessons are designed so that children can learn to swim the same way they learn to sit, crawl, walk, or ride a bike. This frequent exposure in small doses allows your child to focus, practice and problem solve in the water in the same developmentally appropriate way he has learned every other motor skill. The short duration of lessons allows me to do this without putting his health or safety at risk, exhausting or overwhelming your child. Experience has shown that this approach creates muscle memory and increases the ability of a young child to retain these skills for long periods of time.
2. What is the cost of lessons? There are two components to lesson cost.
Registration ($105) is paid online directly to ISR corporate. Each child must undergo a medical screening and gain clearance from our medical team before I can schedule him for lessons. You will go online to answer a series of questions about your child’s medical history – this must be done online directly with RET (and not through the instructor) due to HIPPA. You will also receive a Parent Resource Book, a DVD and some ISR materials to support you and your child through the lesson sequence and beyond.
Lesson fees ($89/week for one child, $79/week for siblings enrolled in the same session).
3. The lesson setup is not what I was expecting, why such a big commitment?
ISR lessons are an invaluable investment in your child’s future. Not only in his safety, but in your peace of mind and in the development of your child’s sense of accomplishment and self-esteem. I've had so many parents come to me after lessons and tell me how much money and time they had spent on other lessons (that seemed less expensive at the time) only to find that after several weeks or sometimes several sessions their young child could do little more than kick and blow bubbles. After ISR lessons, however, their child was amazingly independent and capable of surviving on his own (even in clothes, shoes, and diapers) in the event of an accident. The results speak for themselves – they are well worth the commitment you make to your child – both in time, money, and patience.
4. Why does my child need these lessons, we don’t have a pool?
Many children who drown do not drown in a swimming pool – much less in their own swimming pool. Though having access to bodies of water increases a child’s drowning risk, the access can be at a friend’s pool, a kiddie pool, a water park, a hot tub, lakes, ditches, even bathtubs, etc. And we all know how fast our small children can be! How many times have they gotten away from us for just a moment or gotten into something we didn't think they could reach? How often is your child in the care of someone other than you? Is it your experience that everyone is as diligent as you are when supervising your child?
5. My older child (4+) is a good swimmer already. Why should I enroll him in ISR lessons?
Even a strong swimmer at this age is usually incapable of taking effective coordinated breaths. This means that in an emergency situation (or when fatigued or disoriented) when the child cannot reach an exit or a supervising adult within a certain amount of time he can easily become exhausted be in danger of drowning. The swim-float-swim sequence teaches a child how to attain a “resting float” from any placement. This allows a child in that type of situation to rest, breath and evaluate his options prior to exerting more energy and to maintain that float for extended periods of time if necessary to survive until help arrives. No traditional swim lesson teaches this approach effectively.
6. Will my child cry or become afraid of the water if I put him in ISR lessons?
Your child may cry, most do at the beginning of lessons. I am new to them, the pool is new, and for many children this is the first time they have ever been on their own in a learning situation with anyone other than mom/dad/or daily caregiver. My younger ones are often not yet verbal so the only way they can express that they aren't sure about this or don’t want to try this is to cry. This usually goes away after a few lessons but some children have very strong personalities and for these it may take a bit longer. Your child will not develop a fear of water as a result of ISR lessons. Fear/panic comes from a lack of understanding and not knowing what to do. So your child may be fearful at first – all the more reason he should be in lessons! Once he learns what to do, the fear melts away. Many studies have been done on fear in young children due to this same type of concern and they consistently show us that while years later they child remembers his experience and can maintain his skills, the initial fear (emotion) is long forgotten.
7. How should I decide on a swimming program for my child?
· Choose a program that will teach your child how to handle himself in the water before he is encouraged to play in it. The water is not a fun, safe place to play if your child does not know how to swim.
· Question everything about the swimming program. Question the qualifications of the instructor and the program. Ask what specific skills will be learned and techniques used to teach these skills.
· Be sure your child will learn how to swim, turn on his back to float, rest and breathe and flip back over to swim to the wall. This sequencing of skills is very important to get your child to safety.
· Make sure all swimming lessons are on an individual basis. Never enroll in a program where the instructor must divide attention in the water between several students learning to swim.
· Watch several lessons, ask questions of other parents whose children are enrolled in the program and ask your pediatrician about any swimming program.
· Be sure your child's instructor can thoroughly explain hyponatremia (water intoxication) to you. And, ask what precautions are taken before and during the lesson to avoid such a situation.
· Do not allow your child to be worked with in the water longer than 10 minutes. Any longer than 10 minutes could be potentially dangerous to a small child.
· Do not enroll your child in any swim program before the age of 6 months.
· Do not enroll your child in any swimming program that uses any type of flotation device. Flotation devices can lend a false sense of security to both you and your child.
· Do not allow anyone to throw your child into the water. This is extremely dangerous and could result in brain damage.
· Do not believe that your child or anyone will be drown-proofed by any lessons. No one is ever drown-proofed. Constant supervision in and around the water is the only sure way to prevent drowning.
1. Why do I have to come 10 minutes a day, 5 days a week for 4 – 6 weeks?
ISR lessons are designed so that children can learn to swim the same way they learn to sit, crawl, walk, or ride a bike. This frequent exposure in small doses allows your child to focus, practice and problem solve in the water in the same developmentally appropriate way he has learned every other motor skill. The short duration of lessons allows me to do this without putting his health or safety at risk, exhausting or overwhelming your child. Experience has shown that this approach creates muscle memory and increases the ability of a young child to retain these skills for long periods of time.
2. What is the cost of lessons? There are two components to lesson cost.
Registration ($105) is paid online directly to ISR corporate. Each child must undergo a medical screening and gain clearance from our medical team before I can schedule him for lessons. You will go online to answer a series of questions about your child’s medical history – this must be done online directly with RET (and not through the instructor) due to HIPPA. You will also receive a Parent Resource Book, a DVD and some ISR materials to support you and your child through the lesson sequence and beyond.
Lesson fees ($89/week for one child, $79/week for siblings enrolled in the same session).
3. The lesson setup is not what I was expecting, why such a big commitment?
ISR lessons are an invaluable investment in your child’s future. Not only in his safety, but in your peace of mind and in the development of your child’s sense of accomplishment and self-esteem. I've had so many parents come to me after lessons and tell me how much money and time they had spent on other lessons (that seemed less expensive at the time) only to find that after several weeks or sometimes several sessions their young child could do little more than kick and blow bubbles. After ISR lessons, however, their child was amazingly independent and capable of surviving on his own (even in clothes, shoes, and diapers) in the event of an accident. The results speak for themselves – they are well worth the commitment you make to your child – both in time, money, and patience.
4. Why does my child need these lessons, we don’t have a pool?
Many children who drown do not drown in a swimming pool – much less in their own swimming pool. Though having access to bodies of water increases a child’s drowning risk, the access can be at a friend’s pool, a kiddie pool, a water park, a hot tub, lakes, ditches, even bathtubs, etc. And we all know how fast our small children can be! How many times have they gotten away from us for just a moment or gotten into something we didn't think they could reach? How often is your child in the care of someone other than you? Is it your experience that everyone is as diligent as you are when supervising your child?
5. My older child (4+) is a good swimmer already. Why should I enroll him in ISR lessons?
Even a strong swimmer at this age is usually incapable of taking effective coordinated breaths. This means that in an emergency situation (or when fatigued or disoriented) when the child cannot reach an exit or a supervising adult within a certain amount of time he can easily become exhausted be in danger of drowning. The swim-float-swim sequence teaches a child how to attain a “resting float” from any placement. This allows a child in that type of situation to rest, breath and evaluate his options prior to exerting more energy and to maintain that float for extended periods of time if necessary to survive until help arrives. No traditional swim lesson teaches this approach effectively.
6. Will my child cry or become afraid of the water if I put him in ISR lessons?
Your child may cry, most do at the beginning of lessons. I am new to them, the pool is new, and for many children this is the first time they have ever been on their own in a learning situation with anyone other than mom/dad/or daily caregiver. My younger ones are often not yet verbal so the only way they can express that they aren't sure about this or don’t want to try this is to cry. This usually goes away after a few lessons but some children have very strong personalities and for these it may take a bit longer. Your child will not develop a fear of water as a result of ISR lessons. Fear/panic comes from a lack of understanding and not knowing what to do. So your child may be fearful at first – all the more reason he should be in lessons! Once he learns what to do, the fear melts away. Many studies have been done on fear in young children due to this same type of concern and they consistently show us that while years later they child remembers his experience and can maintain his skills, the initial fear (emotion) is long forgotten.
7. How should I decide on a swimming program for my child?
· Choose a program that will teach your child how to handle himself in the water before he is encouraged to play in it. The water is not a fun, safe place to play if your child does not know how to swim.
· Question everything about the swimming program. Question the qualifications of the instructor and the program. Ask what specific skills will be learned and techniques used to teach these skills.
· Be sure your child will learn how to swim, turn on his back to float, rest and breathe and flip back over to swim to the wall. This sequencing of skills is very important to get your child to safety.
· Make sure all swimming lessons are on an individual basis. Never enroll in a program where the instructor must divide attention in the water between several students learning to swim.
· Watch several lessons, ask questions of other parents whose children are enrolled in the program and ask your pediatrician about any swimming program.
· Be sure your child's instructor can thoroughly explain hyponatremia (water intoxication) to you. And, ask what precautions are taken before and during the lesson to avoid such a situation.
· Do not allow your child to be worked with in the water longer than 10 minutes. Any longer than 10 minutes could be potentially dangerous to a small child.
· Do not enroll your child in any swim program before the age of 6 months.
· Do not enroll your child in any swimming program that uses any type of flotation device. Flotation devices can lend a false sense of security to both you and your child.
· Do not allow anyone to throw your child into the water. This is extremely dangerous and could result in brain damage.
· Do not believe that your child or anyone will be drown-proofed by any lessons. No one is ever drown-proofed. Constant supervision in and around the water is the only sure way to prevent drowning.
Elizabeth Currie, ISR Swim AZ, infantswimaz, SafeSplash AZ, and ISR are proud to serve the Arizona communities of Phoenix, Desert Ridge, Fireside, Aviano, Sky Crossing, Tatum Ranch, Tatum Highlands, Cave Creek, Carefree, Scottsdale, and Paradise Valley.