Meet your ISR Instructor

Ilona Matulaitis

I am so excited to be part of the ISR community of instructors in Southeast Michigan to serve and teach the children in our area!

I worked as a nanny for over a decade and have loved getting to teach and care for incredible children over the years. I have marveled at the ways in which kids learn about the world around them, through exploration and with such joy.

I first heard about ISR in 2018 when Morgan Miller and Nicole Hughes shared so openly and vulnerably about the deaths of their children from drowning. I had no idea that drowning was the number one cause of death for children ages 1 to 4 and that common pool toys and "safety" devices were often the cause of so many of these deaths.

I look forward to teaching your children to become aquatic problem-solvers and gain the skills needed to be safer in and around the water!

FAQs

Will my child need additional lessons?

Based on our research, we know that refresher lessons are important because children change so much both cognitively and physically during the first 4-5 years of life. It is important that their water survival skills grow with their bodies. Frequency depends on the child's age, growth rate, skill level and confidence level. The goal of refresher lessons is to help your child adjust his/her new body size and weight to his/her existing skill level. Your instructor will work with your child to help fine-tune his or her aquatic experience to assist with building efficiency, which will result in self-confidence. This is especially important if your child has not been able to practice any appropriate aquatic skill between seasons.

What is the retention rate with ISR lessons?

ISR claims a retention rate of 94-100% up to one year following lessons. Having said this, children will explore and may pick up bad habits watching other children or with interference like floating in a bathtub or playing on the steps. As your child goes through lessons, you will begin to understand, through communication with your Instructor, what activities may interfere with his/her learned Self-Rescue skills. Contacting and/or returning to your instructor in a timely manner is imperative to maintaining effective habits.

How do kids react during the first few lessons?

Children often fuss during the first few lessons because they are in a new environment and around new people. As your child becomes more confident in his/her ability in the water, the fussing will decrease. It is not unlike the first time you tried a new exercise class, or were asked to perform a task at work that you'd never done before: the first time you try a new task it is always challenging, until you get the hang of it. It is the same for your young child. Your child is learning to perform a skill that he/she's never done before.

What is ISR and how is it different from other swimming programs?

ISR is the product over 45 years of ongoing development in the area of aquatic survival instruction for infants and children. ISR's primary focus is to teach your child to become a productive swimmer, or floater in any depth of water. The goal of ISR is that your child becomes an "aquatic problem solver." ISR will greatly increase your child's chance of surviving an aquatic accident, even when fully clothed!

Let's Get Started!

Fill out the contact form to sign up

Learn More