Scooters for Almost 5 Year Old

Wider rather than narrow. Strong post and good grips on the handlebars. Other than that she might need a helmet and elbow/knee pads. But if the other kids aren't wearing those items she won't wear hers.

We started our kids out with simply razor scooters, they adjusted for size changes as they grew and they still use them today after several years. We did and still do always require helmets for scooters just as with bikes.

Since her gross motor skills are a little delayed, I think I'd start her on a 3 wheeled scooter to try to minimize scraped knees and elbows.

My son and daughter (ages 13 and 7 now) were obsessed with their razor scooters at age 5!! My daughter still loves hers and rides it all the time...that or her bike. Razor scooters take practice but once a kid gets the hang of it, they are really fun. They have only one wheel in the back and one in the front, so you have to get the hang of balance while riding it. It's actually more fun than a 3 wheeled scooter bc they are so smooth and can go faster. (Same thing with roller blades vs regular roller skates. Once our kids tried roller blades they never wanted to use roller skates again). If you are concerned she cannot do it then you could always get her a 3 wheeled scooter...but I would think she would quickly want a razor scooter given her age. Why don't you borrow a friend's scooter to have her try it out? She should wear a helmet and go slow to try to get the feel of it at first. If it turns out she is not interested then you didn't waste money buying one. It sounds optional anyway. PS - You say she has never had a scooter. Does she have a bike? Does she have anything with wheels? I would get her something to play on outside with the other kids so she can practice her gross motor skills. Our kids loved everything with wheels at this age and would switch with neighbor kids so they could try out all the different things. PS - To try something different your daughter might like the Razor Powerwing Castor Scooter. You don't have to worry about balance on this one. You move it side to side to go forward. A neighbor girl has the Yvolution Flicker Scooter and likes it. This one also has 3 wheels. These are different from a normal scooter but are also fun. :)

Our kids had Razor scooters - they come in different sizes and think they have small ones. There are also scooters that have three wheels (ours started with 2) for more balance and some kids might prefer them.

They usually will give you the age appropriateness - for example, here's the razor site (safe) link for one that is recommended for 5+ up.

https://www.razor.com/products/kick-scooters/sweet-pea-a/

You can buy those at a lot of places.

I like that the hand-bar moves up so it grows with them. Two of my kids are not athletically inclined and were able to scooter.

I agree with chacha - there may be a handful of kids who bring scooters. It's not likely the norm - I would check first before spending the money or have her at least try one out to see if she would enjoy it.

We started our son on a scooter with 3 wheels. But i think it's probably an optional activity, so I wouldn't rush to buy one unless you want her to start using one at home.

Based on your other question, I think you're probably experiencing some of the anxiety I felt a year ago when my son started kindergarten. I was so worried about him making the transition that I spent hours paying attention to little details. It didn't help when he actually started kindergarten and came home every day and told me he wanted to go back to preschool because he wanted his friends.

His last day of kindergarten is Thursday, and I realize now how needless my worrying was. Trust your daughter's teachers. Even though you're the expert on your daughter, her teachers have gone through this before. They know how to help kids get through this transition. They know how to handle kids who burst into tears when mom leaves. They know how to build a cohesive class where everyone feels welcome. They'll let you know if there's something you need to be concerned about. Until then, sit back, relax, and know that she's in good hands!

Well if her gross motor is delayed I would say go for it and get her a scooter even if it is optional! This will be great practice for her during the day! I would ask if they are required to have a helmet and/or knee pads. If she's a bit delayed I might go ahead and send a helmet with her, at least for the first few weeks. I used to make my son wear a helmet while riding a scooter, but honestly, I don't anymore. I feel like he's just as close to the ground as if he were running and I've let it go. (he does still wear one while riding a bike).

Definitely make sure she is wearing closed toed shoes on scooter day! They can scrape up their toes good on those things!

Razor scooters are fun but usually you can get cheaper ones that are the same basic idea. I found one on clearance at Target for like $12 one day, so I'd say just look around for sales but at age 5, I would definitely go with a 2 wheeled one and not a 3 wheeled one.

Ask the teachers, but, I have a feeling that "days when she'll be allowed to bring a scooter" is like "days when she'll be allowed to wear flipflops" - it is optional, the program carves out time to allow for kids who would really enjoy doing that. (In the flipflops example, that would just mean they are not running around that day or something similar.)

I would go straight to a two-wheeled Razor scooter and skip the three-wheeled scooter. Your daughter will outgrow a three-wheeled one very soon and then will have to readjust when she switches to two wheels, since the steering is very different on the two types of scooters. Once they figure out the balance, the Razors are actually easier to ride and steer because the front wheel swivels, rather than being fixed like it is on the three-wheeled ones.

Buy one now so she can practice before she starts the summer program. It will be very slow going at first, but she will pick it up faster than you would expect, even with her motor delays. My daughter and several of her friends were zipping around on two-wheeled Razors when they were 2 or 2.5 years old and, as parents, we were very happy that we just started them straight on the Razors without the three-wheeled scooters first.

Get one that she can grow with for a long time. My daughter has had hers for four full years and will fit it for a long time to come (my son turns 10 this week and his own scooter is still the same size as hers).

I would not be ok with this.
Scooter use has THE most injuries above any other toy.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/12/01/sco...#