It's sometimes too early to start
Contrary to belief no kids are born with skates on, even in Canada.
When is a good age to start skating? Hint if they can't walk, can't say the word skate and you can't easily find skates small enough for your child, it's probably too early. Starting kids too early can lead to frustration for everyone involved, fear of the ice, injuries and bad habits. While this seems obvious, If a child is just learning to walk, it 's unrealistic to try and get them to skate.
In terms of physical readiness a child should be:
- Able to go up stairs
- Able to jump
- Able to stand on 1 foot
If they can't do these things they probably wouldn't be able to stand up or walk on skates by themselves.
If you want to start skating lessons kids should be:
- Able to listen to teachers or coaches (skating should not be the first class they try)
- Potty trained
- Able to do physical activity for a half hour
- Comfortable with falling
In general kids should be at least 3 for a parented class and 4 for an unparented. It's perfectly fine if they start later, many competitive figure skaters and NHL hockey players didn't start skating until they were 6 or older. There is really no advantage to pushing a kid to skate before the age of 6 as kids over the age of 6 generally pick up skills a lot faster.
While I've seen kids as young as 2 pushing and gliding, this is definitely a rarity. If your kid is a rink rat and shows an early interest in skating, then feel free to get them in skates and take them for a spin. If they don't though there's no need to worry about it.
