by Kathleen Lynn

Created on: January 14, 2009   Last Updated: January 29, 2009

When taking children skiing for the first time, a lot of the worries can be avoided depending upon the location of the ski trip. For the infant or toddler too young to take a beginner lesson some of the resorts offer childcare services. Researching the resort you use ahead of time can help you plan which of the services will be best suited to your family's needs. Should you be skiing with a day pass at a resort they will normally offer some type of beginner lessons. These are an excellent tool to use in teaching your child the beginning steps to enjoy this sport. Look into beginner classes and see what they offer. Most of the classes offer ski rentals, boot rentals, passes for the lifts and bunny slopes, and possibly even a lunch or snack for your child while they are learning to ski.

Make sure your child is dressed warmly for the event. Their clothing should be warm and waterproof as much as possible. Look into water-resistant overall pants to put on over their jeans or pants. Thermal underwear under the clothing can help keep them warm. Goggles, Hat, Coat, and gloves are necessity items they will need in the cool temperatures. Wet clothing will quickly make your child grouchy and miserable.

Get out there on the slopes with your children. Let them see how much fun mom and dad are having. Let them see even falling can be fun and is nothing to fear. Purposely let yourself fall down a time or two even if you are an expert skier. Children may fear falls when learning new things. While some of their fears are rational we can alleviate that by showing them how much enjoyment we are getting and that we still fall too.

Hold their hands and take things at a pace they are comfortable with. Rushing them to accept the fun of the moment will only add to the stress they are experiencing if they are uncomfortable. Use gentle and firm reassurances to get them to relax.

For a really nervous child, have one parent hold them while the other puts on a show of going down the hill first. The parent going down first should make a production of the event. Be silly. Go all out and show them that it is fun.

The last piece of advice is to make sure that your child knows and learns to respect the lift process. Do not let your children use the lift unattended unless you are certain they know the dangers of this activity. Each year in a ski resort a child is in a lift alone or with another child and starts playing around and falls out. The fault is not the lift or the resort, it was the child not understanding the need to follow the rules for the lift process. Children horsing around on a lift unattended by an adult can lead to serious harm.

Learn more about this author, Kathleen Lynn.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.