Frequently Asked Questions

Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) swimming is a survival-based swim program designed for infants, toddlers, and young children—typically ages 6 months to 6 years.

Unlike traditional toddler swim or group swim lessons, ISR swimming focuses on teaching children self-rescue skills they can use if they accidentally enter the water alone.

Students will learn to confidently swim in the water but more importantly when to float and maintain their float. Over the course of the 6 – 7 week program, I work in small approximations to ensure we are retaining the skills day over day.

ISR swim lessons are designed around survival, not just comfort in the water.

Students learn to:

• Hold their breath

• Roll onto their back to float and breathe

• Swim-float-swim to safety (for walking-age children)
  

Lessons are:

• 1:1 instruction

• 10 minutes per day

• 4 – 5 days per week (Monday – Thursday/Friday)

• 6 – 7 week sessions

Students attend lessons at the same time each day, which supports consistency and faster skill development.

An adjustment period is completely normal, especially for infants and toddlers new to ISR swimming. Some children may experience brief fussiness or tears early on.

Lessons are always approached with patience and care. I work at each child’s pace and use toys, music, and encouragement to create a positive experience. Most children quickly become comfortable (and often excited!) to come to lessons.

Research behind ISR swimming shows that children learn and retain skills best through short, consistent practice.

Daily repetition:

• Strengthens muscle memory

• Prevents skill regression

• Builds confidence through predictable routines

Each lesson ends on the child’s strongest performance for the day.

Infants and toddlers don’t learn the way older kids do. They can’t “remember instructions” in an emergency.

• ISR is building an automatic survival response

• Daily repetition helps skills become reflexive, not thoughtful

• In a fall-in scenario, there’s no time to think — the body has to just do it

Short, frequent lessons create that neurological pathway much faster than weekly classes.

Lesson pricing for my Reno swim lessons is as follows:

• $170 per week for 5 days per week

• $140 per week for 4 days per week

You may pay weekly or in full. A $170 deposit is required to reserve your spot and is applied to your first week of lessons. Your next payment is not due until week two.

There is also a one-time $105 ISR registration fee paid directly to Infant Swimming Resource. This fee covers a pediatric nurse review of your child’s medical and developmental history and is a required safety protocol.

Pro tip: When you create an account in Web Accomplice (my scheduling platform), you’ll receive a gift link that allows friends and family to contribute toward lessons for birthdays or holidays.

After completing the initial 6 – 7 week program, I strongly recommend maintenance lessons to help retain skills. Just like any other skill or program you would invest 6 – 7 weeks into, if you stop practicing you may not be able to perform the skill as well. 

To protect your financial, and more importantly time, investment of the 6 – 7 week session, my recommendation is to come see me once per week or every other week to maintain the skills. Students won’t always be learning something new at every lesson. If you think about an 18-month old who learned the skill-set, the float will feel a lot different in 6 months when the student turns 2. It’s important to understand that as students develop and grow to make sure we are checking-in on their skills. 

Maintenance lessons are $34 per lesson. You would schedule them in your WebAccomplice Portal. 

If you’re thinking you want to take a break from lessons, keep in mind how long the break is for. For students who take an extended break (3+ months), a refresher session is recommended. Refresher courses typically run 4 – 5 days per week for 2 – 3 weeks.

I am deeply passionate about teaching ISR swimming and believe every child deserves access to life-saving water safety skills. Even if I won the lottery tomorrow, I would still teach.

Northern Nevada is surrounded by water—lakes, rivers, pools—and our community is incredibly active. Reno swim lessons focused on survival aren’t a luxury here; they’re a necessity. My goal is to help protect children and empower families through education and preparation.

ISR Reno swim lessons are great for toddlers. The program is for students as young as 6 months old to 6 years old. As an instructor, I have found that the older kids (4 years and older) do amazingly well in the program and typically don’t need the full 6 week course.

Parents can enroll their child as early as 6 months old. There is no “perfect” time to enroll. I like to tell parents that it’s whenever they are ready to commit to the schedule because it’s 4 – 5 days per week for 6 – 7 weeks which is the hardest part of lessons because it requires a lot of planning. 

I like to also educate parents that it depends on your daily environment. Things to consider: Do you have a pool or body of water in your backyard? Does your child have access to a body of water regularly (grandparents pool/in-home daycare pool)? If this is the case, then I recommend starting sooner than later.

Yes, I encourage parents to stay poolside and not leave the pool deck. I understand this can be hard, especially if your child has some emotions during lessons. It’s so important to show them support and offer them encouragement and words of praise like “Good Job! You’re Doing So Great!”. 

I’ve put my own children through the program and I know it’s hard to watch your child not always be “happy” but this is about their safety and it’s amazing to watch them progress week over week. They also get familiar with the environment and adjust their emotions which helps.

I like to note, if there is ever a moment where you don’t feel comfortable watching your child please just tell me and we will get them out of the water, no ifs, ands or buts. Every parent is different and I want to make sure you are comfortable during lessons at all times.

You must use 2 swim diapers for your child if they have not been potty trained for at least 6 months. These MUST be snug fitting swim diapers. You don't want to be that parent whose child shuts down the pool from a poop explosion.

I strongly recommend that you purchase a Splash About Happy Nappy diaper for the top layer. Here is an Amazon link to Happy Nappy and Big Elephant products which are my recommendations. 

You can use either an I-play swim diaper, an elastic waist swim diaper or disposable swim diaper as the bottom layer. The disposable swim diapers are NOT keeping stool in, so we prefer that you do not use them unless they are a 3rd layer under the 2 cloth layers. If your child has a stool accident that leaks out of the diapers and they are not wearing the proper attire, you will be charged $150 to clean the homeowner's pool. 

Lessons will have to be canceled for all children if any bowel gets in the pool, so let's please not let this happen. I will have a few swim diapers available to borrow poolside if you forget them or need time to order them from Amazon.

For those students who are potty trained, a regular swimsuit can be worn.

I have make-up lessons available if a lesson is missed. I have a “flex week” built-in between my sessions should there need to be make-ups or we need some extra time. There have been a few instances where a student needs some extra time. If this is the case, I will always communicate that with the parent.