# How do you teach a kid to skip? And should she be riding a bike by now?



## melissel (Jun 30, 2004)

My 4 3/4-year-old DD1 is not getting it, and she wants to. She's getting frustrated over it








Outside of showing her repeatedly, I have no idea how to help her! Is there some trick to teaching it, or is it just something that clicks eventually?

Also, is she the only kid this age who has no interest in riding her bike? She has a very cool, girly, just-her-style bike with training wheels, and she won't set one butt cheek on the thing







She's generally not a very physical kid, and said that even if I get my own bike, she won't ride with me. Do I push on this? She definitely needs more exercise, but I know she can get that other ways, obviously!

TIA!


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## Nankay (Jan 24, 2002)

Ok..I'm 40 yrs old and can't skip.

My 4 yr old was riding a 2 wheeler but he was always "ahead" of the curve in physical things. His older sister was closer to 8 before she was riding. I wasn't rding a 2 wheeler confidentally until 3rd grade or so.


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## octobermom (Aug 31, 2005)

Lots of kids cannot skip at that age and even ones that can really don't do a true skip. DO other things with her hopping in two feet together walking using little VS big steps walking on toes VS flat footed just make it fun these will all help to strengten the muscles and practice the balance and corination she'll need to 'skip" and even ride her bycycle latter. Some never learn and unless shes having serious delays on ALL of this I wouldn't sweat it.


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## bec (Dec 13, 2002)

I remember in grade school (maybe 2nd grade?) having a note sent home to my parents because I couldn't skip.







: They wanted my parents to "work" with me on that. I was traumatized, and thought I was in trouble.







But, my parents were sweet about it and reassured me that there would be no trouble for not knowing how to skip. I am happy to report that I have, since learned to skip just fine.









I would just focus on physical activities that she likes and is interested in.


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## Guava~Lush (Aug 9, 2003)

My sons tumbling class teacher asked me to teach him how to skip. He wasnt getting it. I thought how funny to have to teach a kid to skip, I thought it came naturally- obviously not!

So we practiced all day. I demonstrated over and over. The hop- step thing. Hop on the foot you step out on, next foot- well you know.

He was frustrated but finally got it.

I felt like a bad mom cause I never taught my son to ride a bike. But he taught himself over at the neighbors house. I was impressed.


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## peachpie (Jan 25, 2007)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *bec* 
I remember in grade school (maybe 2nd grade?) having a note sent home to my parents because I couldn't skip.







: They wanted my parents to "work" with me on that.

ME TOO! Only it was Kindy or 1st grade. My parents still bring it up and laugh about it! I remember my mom trying to demonstrate skipping around the house.









I second the idea of looking for other physical activities to enjoy with her.


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## menudo (May 21, 2002)

DD finally taught her self to ride a 2 wheeler right before her tenth birthday. Prior to that she tried (for YEARS) and would flip out in panic and hysterics. At Christmas we got DS a 2 wheele that is lower to the ground than DD. She felt safer and boom-rides it now. DS has no interest in it tho. Go figure!


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## Attached Mama (Dec 4, 2005)

I wouldn't push anything she is not interested in. I think there are enough fun active things for kids to do that they will eventually (maybe with a bit of hellp) find something htey like.

As for skipping, the way to teach it (I used to be a ballet dancer and teacher) is as follows:

]Have the kid practice hopping on one leg a few times and then the other. Let them know that hopping is jumping up and down on *one* leg (not switching legs).

Explain and demonstrate - "skipping is 'step on the leg; hop on the leg' - that's how we skip. Then you show them - step on the leg, hop on the leg, step on the leg, hop on the leg -demonstrating and doing it very slowly. MIght have to remind them that hopping does not switch legs - just up and down on one leg.

Then they do it with your help -very slowly at first - explain that you have to learn it slowly b4 doing it fast. Touch the right leg and tell them to step on the leg, then tell them now hop on it. THen "Now it's the other leg's turn - step on the leg, hop on the leg. First leg's turn - step on it, hop on it. Etc. Usually most kids will be skipping pretty good after a few practice sessions.

Again, you will have to remind them that it has to be learned slowly, and that hopping does not change legs. Also, it is very helpful to actually physically touch the leg that is doing the work.

HTH


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## greeny (Apr 27, 2007)

My dd learned to skip in ballet class. She started class just after she turned three. NONE of the girls could skip on the first day. There were 12 little girls, all doing weird gallopy-things around the room during skipping time. The other moms and I were cracking up. Now, eight months later, every single one of the girls can skip well.

So... ballet helps! Not that it's the only place she can learn, but a physically-oriented class that she enjoys might be a good idea. My dd is not, by nature, physically inclined either, and taking ballet has helped her coordination _so much_ that I'm amazed. She really wants to take gymnastics too, and I think we'll sign her up this summer and see how that goes.

Are there any dance or gymnastics classes near you? Or sports that she might enjoy? Not that life and learning is all about classes, but sometimes kids (or mine, at least!) get frustrated trying to learn things from me but not when an "official" teacher is showing them.

About the bike... don't worry about it. She'll do it when she wants to.


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## LynnS6 (Mar 30, 2005)

No idea how to teach how to skip. The alternating thing got me too for the longest time. I'd suggest redirecting her to 'galloping' - it's easier.

As for the bike - under 5 is very young, IMO. I didn't ride a two wheeler until I was 7, and the average age around our neighborhood is about 6. There is one family with incredibly physically adept boys who all learned about 3-4, and there's my ds, who's 6 and in no danger of riding a bike without training wheels any time soon!


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## KMK_Mama (Jan 29, 2006)

My DD will be 5 in 2 weeks and refuses to ride a bike. She likes us to push her but she won't pedal. I gave up...but now she sees all her friends riding without training wheels and she wants to learn now. BUT her old bike is too small and I don't want to buy a new one if she is going to decide she has no interest again.







:


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## lisac77 (May 27, 2005)

Funny my mom and I were just talking about this the other day. DS has been able to skip forever, and I mentioned it to my mom (he is almost 4). My mom said she had to teach me how to skip when I was 7! I think it must be one of those things that's pretty individual... nobody does it right at the same time.


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## pigpokey (Feb 23, 2006)

You are a family, and I think you should give yourself permission to push the bike riding if you want. No doubt she will enjoy it once she learns or at the worst it will just be another way to get to the library or park. It's up to you whether you want to be able to bike there together. You might do a tandem if you have the money.

I just watched the pedalmagic.com video (you have to pay), and think it is fabulous.


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## wildmonkeys (Oct 4, 2004)

The very best way to learn to skip is holding the hand of somebody who loves you and already knows how! (as an aside, I think 5 or 6ish is an age where kids can usually do it rather than 4)

As for the bike, four is pretty early to ride a bike without help. My oldest did it, but I think 5 or 6 is more common.

BJ
Barney, Ben & Patrick


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## hellyaellen (Nov 8, 2005)

my dd just got the knack of both earlier this year and she's 7. (she had been on a bike w/ training wheels for a year or so before though)


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## Earthy Mama (Jun 4, 2004)

If you are worried about her not getting enough activity, try to find other things she enjoys doing. My 4yo love running around, playing softball, kickball, tag, hide and seek, etc.


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## sahli29 (Jan 23, 2004)

I think some things will just *click* when they are ready.My dd was this way with certain things.No matter how much I showed her she could not do it,and then one day she was doing it. DD got a bike when she was 4-5,but never really used it.Liked her scooter instead.It took her one day this spring(she is 8 now) to learn how to ride it.She just took off on it


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## beanma (Jan 6, 2002)

you might plan a bike-riding playdate if you're wanting her to learn. if she sees her friends riding -- well y'know peer pressure and all that.

on the skipping thing, i don't know if mty dd1 can skip or not. she certainly has some personal "moves", but i'm not sure if skipping is in the repetoire. she takes dance at a great low pressure studio and i don't think they've mentioned skipping!


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## 4evermom (Feb 3, 2005)

Maybe she would like a scooter better than a bike. My ds prefers a bike. I think he likes being able to sit. He is very active but hates walking. People just have their preferences. My niece who is the same age as my ds has had a pretty bike that she likes, but she really is just starting to actually use it, possibly because ds wants to borrow it all the time when he visits. I expect he will use training wheels for at least another year (he's 5 3/4) if not two. He doesn't maintain a fast enough pace yet but the bike is also a touch too big and on the heavy side.


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## 1xmom (Dec 30, 2003)

My dd is 7 and can ride a 2-wheeler a little a bit and she will only ride it in the grass. Once she hits the pavement it's over. Right now she is pretty busy with other activities for us to consistently keep trying.
I never taught her how to skip either, but I think she learned from ballet lessons. I don't quite remember to be honest.


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## Liz (Mar 8, 2002)

My son was a little slow on the skipping thing. It must be a milestone on some developmental chart so teachers look for it.

On the bike thing, I think that training wheels actually make learning to ride harder. The bike is so tippy it freaks kids out. Some kids say, "I hate these things, i've got to learn how to ride with two wheels." That was me and my son was the same. However, I've seen other kids go the other way, "I hate these things, I hate bike riding." So take them off and get her started on two wheels. Work with her though, it sounds like she'll need some support to get over the hump.

Secondly, all of you with kids that don't like bike riding: does their bike fit them well? Every time we buy my son a bike (I think we're on #4) we let him try every bike in the store. And we're always amazed at the huge difference between each bike and how it works for him. Especially in the small bikes, there were bikes that he couldn't even make go because the distances and angles between the seat, pedals and handlebars just didn't work for him. It didn't matter how expensive or good it was, it was all in the fit. For example, the Kettler bike didn't work for him. If we had just picked one out for him and it hadn't fit he would never have been turned on to biking.


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## littleteapot (Sep 18, 2003)

I cannot remember not skipping, so I think I probably did it early but I know quite a few people who still can't do it. It's like snapping your fingers, it just comes when it comes.

As for bike riding: I didn't learn to ride a bike until I was almost seven! My cousin, who was *three years younger* than I was, could ride a two-wheeler at three. THREE! He'd ride his bike in circles around mine. It was so embarrassing. I just couldn't get it. I made my mom and dad take me to the track every day until I learned, but it was a long time before I really rode it confidently.
I wouldn't worry, these things come at very different ages and different stages and I think pretty much everything is 'normal' in some way.


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## JayGee (Oct 5, 2002)

Can she gallop? DS likes to gallop, but he can't skip yet either (5.5). Galloping seems to be easier because you don't hop on the same foot between strides (if that makes sense







).

As for the bike, the range seems to be HUGE. DS took off his training wheels the month before he turned 5, but the 7 yo twins down the street still ride with theirs. If she is reticent to even try the bike with training wheels, how about having her ride a tricycle instead, or a scooter? DS still loves his trike and scooters EVERYWHERE!


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## Ravin (Mar 19, 2002)

I'd say she's young to expect anything resembling mastery of the bike, but I'd encourage her to get on it and start learning. Of course, around here a bike is an important form of transportation. But my DD, though 3 1/2, is a long way from outgrowing the weight limits on my child seat, let alone the trailer. I figure by the time she's close to that, she'll also be close to mastering riding her own bike, and we can get a ride-along for her (like a seat and wheel/pedals and handlebars that attaches to an adult bike so a kid can ride and keep up with the adult). Since she's small for her age, though, I doubt she'll have the hang of riding a bike independently until first grade at least. Which is also when I recall I got the hang of it.


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## melissel (Jun 30, 2004)

Thanks everyone, I do feel much better. I always thought that skipping was something that just came naturally too







But a teacher of hers (preschool teacher, but not everyday teacher, an administrator who also does a once-weekly gym program with the kids) mentioned to me that DD2 couldn't skip, because she was the only one in her class that couldn't, supposedly. It wasn't accusatory or threatening in any way, but it's been bugging me ever since! And I know DD WANTS to skip, and periodically thinks she has learned how (but is usually galloping, actually). So I wondered if there was a way to help her learn.

As for the bike, hers does have training wheels, and is tippy, which I need to address. But she never liked even riding her tricycle--it required too much effort from her, and she didn't want to ride enough to bother. She'd ride down the driveway, but when it came to putting forth the energy to turn and ride back, or even go on the flat sidewalk, she'd just get up and walk away. No way do I expect her to ride without training wheels yet, but I do feel like she should have some kind of desire to at least pedal down sidewalk, you know? Am I wrong for feeling that way? I don't know! I try to let her do things at her own pace, but I feel like I should be encouraging, and on some days that feels a lot like harassing







:


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## Mom_of_a_ton (Mar 8, 2007)

One of my kids didn't learn to ride a two wheeler until she was 10y but liked other biking styles before that.
As for skipping we start jumping on the spot to clapping, then with people turning the rope for you and then by yourself.


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## Novella (Nov 8, 2006)

Our DD#1 learned to ride a bike in the summer - she had turned 4 in the spring. This was with a fair bit of assistance of my husband running with her. We had decided to bite the bullet and get rid of the training wheels. It takes very little before a child can "outride" the training wheels speed-wise and is tipping with frustration when turning. By the spring she turned 5, she was proficient enough to ride the bike herself to get to school a couple of blocks away.

Our DD#2 will not be as quick. She is much more timid about physical pursuits. I figured she would want her training wheels forever! Interestingly, the opposite is true. She is almost 4.5 and has been out on the bike very VERY little this spring. She often doesn't want to when given the opportunity, or tries it for only a couple of minutes. But somehow, she has decided that training wheels feel less secure and she asked us to take them off. It wouldn't suprise me at all if she doesn't learn this summer.

I distinctly remember DD#2 not being able to skip and being so sad about it and wanting us to teach her - which was a humourous but not very successful activity. Then suddenly, she went from hopeless to proficient. That was the spring after she turned 3.

My mom has taught kindergarten at different times in her career. She always said that about half of kids learned to ride a bike the summer before kindergarten and about half the summer after.

One of my nieces didn't ride a bike until she was about 7 or 8. She (adult now) still vividly remembers the absolute fear of the lack of balance and the learning process.


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## Cranberry (Mar 18, 2002)

DS is 7 and still can't ride without training wheels on his bike. He's just not that interested in bike riding. He'd rather read! He'll learn it when he wants to.


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## punkrockmommy (Oct 31, 2005)

My family loves to bike we dont have a car and i dont really like the bus anymore unless we need to catch it, She rides her bike with training wheels everywhere with us now. it is a bit tippy but i have noticed her starting to correct herself and she has gotten really good at keeping up and going along with us. she rides it to and from daycare 5 days a week. I think that by the time she is 4 she might be on a two wheeler. i think that it is important to her and i have noticed that her behavior has gotten a bit easier as well.


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