Learning to Jump Rope

Does your child know how to jump rope?

Teaching your child to jump rope is a developmental milestone and I find it is not being fostered by adults. Benefits of jumping rope include learning coordination, building stamina and spatial awareness, and boosting cognitive function (ie math skills) . As your child gets older, jumping rope and singing songs at the same time activates both right and left hemispheres of the brain.

How do you begin?
When your child is between 2-2.5 years, place a rope/silk scarf flat on the floor and have them practice jumping with two feet over the rope. It’s also a great way for you to get your daily dose of movement by joining with your child! Then once they achieve this skill, have them practice jumping in the same spot. I like to use a target/sticker/painters tape to get them to jump with both feet and jump on the same spot.

Around age 4, introduce a 12 ft rope where you as the adult control the rhythm & speed of the jump rope while your child is purely focused on jumping. Once they get the hang of it, introduce songs & see how long they can jump. Building stamina is important especially in terms of their breathing. The adult sings the song while the child jumps. As the year progresses, your child will be able to jump for longer periods and sing songs on their own at the same time.

Once they are 5/5.5 years, introduce a single jump rope that they can control & provide opportunities for them to do it vs you doing it for them.