Here I have brought a comprehensive guide for you on How to Teach a Kid to Skateboard carefully. With adequate care and supervision, they may have the confidence to experience the true delights of skating.
Skateboarding is the most creative yet the most fun and thrilling game. Skaters can master simple tricks and then progress to more complicated tricks that will delight other skaters. To maintain this tradition, you must teach these tactics to your younger siblings or children. So they may pass on these to the next generations and so on.
Skating, as we all know, is an exciting yet risky sport that may result in serious injuries if you lose your balance. That is why, when providing instruction, you must have the proper equipment, and your child is approximately 5 years old. You should also keep a tight eye on your youngsters when they are skating.
How To Skateboard For Kids: Right Equipment
While making your child learn skateboarding, you need to make sure that you have the right equipment. We have listed here some important items which are necessary to get.
01 Right Skateboard
If you don’t have the right skateboard, then you won’t be able to make your child learn proper skating. It’s better to start with some cruiser skateboards with large and soft wheels. These wheels provide more stability. Though your child won’t be able to make flips through these boards, they can easily learn stability and balance with these boards.
Related article: Best Skateboard Brands
Moreover, make sure the board you are getting has somewhat tight bearings, so your child doesn’t make turns and learn to balance the board first.
02 Safety Gear
You should not start teaching your child to skate without skateboarding gear. The essential safety gear for your child includes a skateboard helmet, skateboard knee pads, skateboard elbow, and wrist pads. Most parents just buy their child a helmet and think it’s enough safety gear. Well, the truth is it’s not. Your child’s legs and arms also need protection. Any strike or fall can damage their bones or skin badly.
Therefore, you need to buy a good pair of skateboard knee, elbow, and wrist pads. Once your child learns skating, then you can allow him to remove knee pads if they find it a bit heavy, but a skateboard helmet is always compulsory.
03 Right Skateboard Shoes
Another important thing to get your kids is skateboard shoes. The right skateboard shoes will provide the necessary traction to your child and make him comfortable while skating the board.
04 Skating Terrain
If your child is skating for the first time, then make him skate on grippy terrain. Don’t allow him to skate in streets or skate parks. The best terrain for kids is grassy parks or carpets. Once your kid learns to balance, then you can move him to skate parks or streets to learn other tricks.
05 Divide Your Goals
Don’t rush your child to learn everything. You can devise a plan and set a target. Then divide the target into smaller targets. Once your child achieves that goal, you can make another goal and start preparing him for this.
06 Recording
It’s better to record your child’s skating progress. When you play your videos later, it helps to learn and identify mistakes. Moreover, this recording also serves as motivation for children. Your child can see how, on the very first day of skating, he was not able to even stand on the board, and now he is skating his board efficiently.
How To Ride A Skateboard For Kids
Once you have got the right tools, now it’s time to start teaching your kid skateboarding. Children skateboarding is far different from adults. As they are learning and skating at a younger age, you need to make them teach the basics. Once they become pros, then you can allow them to skate freely and explore their own skating tricks.
Determine Their Stance
The very first thing your child needs to learn is to determine their skating stance. You may adopt different tricks to determine their skating stance, i.e., kicking ball trick or going upstairs. Whichever foot your child uses to kick the ball or to move upwards on stairs, this foot will determine his stance.
Moreover, you can simply make him stand on the skateboard and look at his feet. If he is using his right foot to push the board, then he is regular, or if he is placing his left foot on the back and pushing with it, then your child’s stance is goofy.
Learn more about skateboarding stance: Regular Vs Goofy
Don’t push your child to change his stance if he is goofy. Whichever natural stance they have, just let them use it and skate comfortably. Once they learn how to skate, then they can learn different stances as well.
Teach Balancing
The very first step you need to teach your child in skateboarding is balancing. For this, ask your child to stand on the board with their natural stance. One foot is at the back while the other is on the front. Then ask them to lean forward while shifting their weight towards the heel. When they are comfortable standing and balancing their body on the board, then you can move on to the next step.
Moving Skateboard
After balancing, make your child learn how to move the skateboard without losing their balance. For this, you must have a proper place as well. You can ask kids to place one foot on the board near the front bolts and push the board with the other foot. If they find it difficult, then break this goal into smaller steps.
You may ask your child to move the board by taking one step and then placing it on the board and moving the front foot sideways while bending a bit. Don’t allow them to place both their feet parallel, as it can be dangerous. Once they are comfortable moving the board, then you can ask them to place their feet on the board and then start pushing it.
Tic-Tac Trick
Tic-tac is a basic skateboarding trick that your child can learn easily once they have learned to balance and move the skateboard.
To execute this trick, ask your kid to place the foot which is used for pushing on the tail curb of the board. Now place the other foot on the bolts. Lean down a bit and shift your weight on the foot which is placed on the tail. This helps to raise the board from the nose a little bit. Now make your child learn to propel his shoulders left and right and move the board. A tic-tac will be performed easily. This trick requires balancing and patience.
Once your child learns to push the board with style and balance, then he can learn other intricate tricks as well.
Riding Slopes
After one or two months of practicing, when your children learn to balance and push the board easily, you can take them to the skatepark. Now you can start with slopes. Make sure the slope is not too steep.
Then take your child to the top of the slope and stand with him. Now give a little push and help him to move the board. It’s better to correct their foot positioning before they go downhill. Once they start going downhill while standing on the board, you may run along with them. This helps you to catch the child if they slip or fall.
Picking Up The Skateboard
You can also make your little champs pick up the board without leaning on the ground always. For this, ask them to place the board in a vertical position in front of them. Now place one foot on the edge of the tail and apply a little pressure. This pressure makes the board stand up. Your child then leans forward and grabs the board with their hands.
Make sure your child has removed the foot from the skateboard while grabbing; otherwise, he may fall or get hurt.
Also check out this article: Is Skateboarding Hard to Learn?
Final Thoughts
You must pursue your child’s skateboarding enthusiasm by giving proper training to him. Teaching your child how to skateboard is best done by guiding him through each step yourself.
Moreover, don’t be discouraged if they fail in their first few efforts. Take your skateboarding lessons gently but steadily. It is preferable to cultivate the habit of coming to skate parks early in the morning because it is also a kind of physical activity.
Furthermore, you must prioritize protective gear and constantly observe your child when he is playing with his skateboard. You may let them develop their own skate moves and enjoy the skating journey once they become experts.
