Social media platforms and forums can be amazing sources of information, but as we all know, misinformation can go unchecked…sometimes with severe consequences. It’s true, in the information age opinions - however unqualified or qualified - are more accessible than ever before and are shared in real-time on virtually any topic. Given that drowning is the leading cause of accidental death for children under the age of four, it's absolutely imperative to set the record straight with regard to the importance of survival swimming lessons and layers of defense to keep infants and young children safe.While oftentimes blurring the line between opinion and fact, where survival swimming is concerned, a significant portion of the criticism leveled at many “swim schools” purporting to teach infants and young children survival swimming skills, on various platforms like YouTube and Facebook, is well founded, and in many cases, we at Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) agree!
As the global leader in survival swimming lessons for infants and young children, Infant Swimming Resource team members see, hear, and read a significant amount of what goes on under the umbrella of “swimming lessons” or #swimminglessons; and the truth is, a fair bit of the criticism and arising controversy is rooted in real actual problems with many of the “lessons” we see. At face value, providing swimming lessons to infants and young children is not at all worthy of criticism nor is it at all controversial; However, the “how” of those skills being taught, in many cases, becomes an appropriate target for criticism, when the parameter of that “instruction” spans from water acclimation classes oftentimes utilizing flotation devices, all the way to quite literally throwing a child into the pool (neither of which occurs in any Infant Swimming Resource Lesson...ever).
What we’ve learned is that the criticism and controversy surrounding survival swimming lessons does not originate from the idea that a young child knowing how to save herself in the water is worthy of criticism nor controversy, at all. Instead, it comes from an overly broad term “survival swimming lessons;” which, candidly, is fair given some of the “instructors” we see operating, but, on the other where comments regarding criticism and controversy surrounding survival are concerned, it can be quite dangerous given the proven efficacy of ISR Lessons.
Avoiding the criticism and controversy associated with survival swimming lessons, be they ISR lessons or from another provider at-large, and ensuring that your children receive the best lesson experience possible requires a bit of a deep dive into what makes Infant Swimming Resource, and more importantly the results we achieve every day, different.
Perhaps the greatest differentiation is rooted in a simple example: as parents, we know no two children are the same, so it serves to reason that teaching methods that will work for one child, regardless of what is being taught, may not work for every child. With that simple premise in mind, the most effective teaching methods are those which focus on the feedback/responses of the student as that student makes approximations towards the target behavior or “goal.” This concept extends to tasks all children must master and include potty training, tying shoelaces, language skills, multiplication tables, and in this case? Survival swimming skills.
Over our 60 year history, ISR has seen a wide range of methods and “theories” designed to “get the same results as Infant Swimming Resource,” and, in this context, much of the controversy and criticism is well founded. From group lessons supposedly centered on teaching survival swimming lessons but fail to focus on the individual child and their response to the aquatic environment, to one on one lessons where a child is thrown in the water, there’s plenty of controversy to be had, and appropriate criticism to level.
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. To speak with your local ISR Instructor and learn more about what makes ISR so unique use our ISR Instructor Locator tool, and in the meantime, please make sure to watch all infants and young children constantly around the water.
