ISS stands for Infant Survival Swim.

There are two leading methods for teaching infants and toddlers how to swim:

Infant Swimming Resource (ISR) - ISR teaches babies how to float until they can be rescued.
Survival Swim - ISS focuses on survival and self-rescue. This method teaches the technique of swim-float-swim. It helps children combat fear and fatigue in the water, while enabling them to find an exit strategy and get out of the water safely and quickly.

What is swim-float-swim?

Swim-Float-Swim is a technique that teaches children to swim for safety and float for rest. This can be taught to children as young as six months. They learn to swim for intermittent periods of time toward the shore or pool edge. In between swimming, they learn to roll to their back to float and breathe during rest. The child uses kicking while on their stomach to swim toward safety, and when they are tired, roll onto their back face-up.

ISS skills lead to recreational swimming

Safety and survival skills are the foundation for all swimming skills. When children learn ISS, they can build upon the knowledge with stroke development and play. Kicking, floating, and paddling give children confidence and comfort in the water. This leads to a lifetime of recreational enjoyment of water.

Survival Swim is for all depths

While most people think of drowning as being related to pools or open bodies of water, nearly one-third of child drownings happen at home. Most of those incidents occur in the bathtub. Survival Swim teaches infants and toddlers to survive in any depth of water, from the shallowest bathtub to the deepest lake or ocean. It can even be practiced in the bath at home!

How can you get started?

Early exposure to water, and consistency are key in teaching children survival swimming. Find a parent participation (mommy/daddy and me) class in your area to start before 6 months old to get your little one in the pool. If you have a child between the ages of 6 months and 4 years old, you can use the ISS method to teach your baby life-saving swimming skills. Survival Swim isn’t just for babies. These skills can be used to teach anyone, at any age, how to swim — even adults. Find a qualified swim school and the right instructor for your family, and do not delay.