The playful aspect of skating appeals to children, often in their early years. Many parents buy traditional skates with plastic wheels.
Motor skills become more refined with age
During the first years of his life, the child learns how his body, the muscular system works, and at first he refines his general motor skills. His gestures become more precise, he becomes aware of his posture, the position of his limbs.
In kindergarten, children improve their motor skills with fun activities. A child will be more skillful if they are regularly faced with motor tasks that request it. It should, however, these tasks should be optimally challenging and not maximum, i.e. in relation to skill level.
At what age can a child start skating?
It may happen that children start at the age of 3 or 3 and half years, but some will not be able to practice before the age of 6 years. Skating is very much the ability to stay balanced, whether for kids or adults. Some children’s motor development ends later than others.
Most of the elite world champion skaters started at the age of 6. If you see your child struggling to balance standing up, don’t force it, the adventure will be tried again later. It is better to take the time than enter it in the first step.
What type of skates to choose?
Skate for children: from what age? Roller skating is a sliding sport, it’s good to remember that many parents who buy roller wheels don’t spin or as little as those found at Fisher Price. Is it really a good option?
Actually, not because the lack of sliding makes the child progress. Walking is imitated because the wheels “lock”. In short, the central idea is not good and they give you a bad skating technique.
The solution is to buy a real skate, even buy some skates with a very greasy ABEC bearing. The grease will reduce the rotation of the wheel, but not the block. Therefore, if the child imitates the movement of walking, the wheel offers little resistance and must adapt its action to advance.
Real skates are a bit more expensive, but it will really be a challenge engine for the child to learn to skate well from the beginning.
Skates fixed or variable size
A fixed-size skate, like adult skates, adapts well to practice, but it has to change more often, especially in children because the feet grow very fast. They are less expensive to buy (around 50 to 100$), the skates must be replaced more frequently. If the child practices regularly, this is not necessarily a problem, as the skates wear out quickly.
Another solution is to invest directly in the adjustable skates. Most of the major brands on the market now offer 4 adjustable foot sizes, for example 29 to 32, 33 to 36, 37 to 40.The initial investment is higher but finally, it comes out a winner especially since these skates sell well in the second-hand market.
How to improve the child’s technique safely?
Skate for children: from what age? There is no age to practice safely! Never forget to equip your child with all the protections:
- Elbow pads
- Kneepads
- Wristbands
- and of course the helmet!
Good habits are taken from the beginning and then it will be natural!
Why learn to skate early?
As in many sports, most learning starts early and skills are instinctively acquired quickly.
And thanks to several factors:
The child is less apprehensive than adults, less inhibitions
- Learn faster
- It is curious to discover new activities.
On the other hand, its skeleton is still quite flexible and better supports shocks and falls.